Sherlock Holmes: Trifles

 "Yes, this is the great Agra" [SIGN]  It's where Jonathan Small met Mahomet Singh, Dost Akbar and Abdullah Khan and together they made a pact known as the Sign of the Four. The Fort of Agra, in the city of the same name.   Small described it as a queer and enormous place, with deserted halls and winding passages. In other words, the perfect setting for a treasure hunt and murder. We explore the ins and outs of the great fort. It's just a Trifle.     Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles200 Agra Fort (Cultural India) Agra Fort (Wikipedia) Agra Fort (Lonely Planet) Battle of Agra (Wikipedia) Agra Fort Directory according to the Census taken on the 27th July 1857 by Asst Surgeon JP Wa

 "You have been cruelly used" [SPEC]  We're at the end of our four-part series on Women in the Canon from The Best of the Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 2. This time we look at "The Victims."   That may seem a broad topic for a 20-something minute podcast. And it is. But we hit some of the highlights on which women were the most cruelly used and Conan Doyle's take on women's rights.  It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles199 The Best of the Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 2 Previous episodes in this series:  Episode 185 - Women of Influence Episode 190 - The Working Girls Episode 194 - Ladies of Title   Sponsor The BSI Press   Music credits Performers: Uncredited v

"we did not meet to talk about the cut of my socks" [3GAR]    When you think of attire in the Sherlock Holmes stories, the mind usually turns to the deerstalker and Inverness, and perhaps Sherlock Holmes's disguises.   But what about day to day attire, specifically of Holmes's clientele? We picked up on an article from The Sherlock Holmes Journal and ran with it.  It's just a Trifle. Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles198 Gaiters (Wikipedia) Shepherd's check The Best of the Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 2 Three previous episodes mention disguise:  Episode 96 - Trick or Treat Episode 105 - Beards in the Canon Episode 148 - Aliases and Disguises   Sponsor The Baker Street Jour

 "Have you the dates of those letters?" [HOUN]  The Hound of the Baskervilles is one of Sherlock Holmes's most famous cases. But what can we say about the date of the case? Watson never specifically mentions a date, but many chronologists fix it in October 1889.    How did they come to that conclusion? And what else do we know about Holmes and Watson that make such a date worthy of questioning? It's just a Trifle.        Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.      Links / Notes  This episode: ihose.co/trifles197  "The Date Being—?" by Andrew J. Peck and Leslie S. Klinger  I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere Episode 144: The Chronologies of Sherlock Holmes    Sponsor  The Baker Street Journal    Music credits  Performers: Uncredi

"something further from Brook Street" [RESI]  When Percy Trevelyan went to open up his practice, he found that he had more in brains than he did in his pocketbook. Until a shrewd businessman came along and made a business proposition that suited them both nicely.   All was well until that benefactor-cum-landlord met an untimely end. What became of the good doctor after that? And of his residence? It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles195   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0   --  

"forbear from crossing the moor in those dark hours" [HOUN]     One of the most iconic characters in the Sherlock Holmes stories is not a character at all. It's Dartmoor. As Holmes himself said of it, "Never been there? Ah, well, I don't suppose you will forget your first visit."    Dartmoor is a land that's filled with beauty, mystery, and intrigue. In other words, the perfect setting for a Sherlock Holmes story. It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles    Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles195   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution

  "Title and money—who could carry them better than she?" [ABBE]    We've investigated which women were influential in their own right in the Sherlock Holmes stories, and then those who had to work for a living. Next up, we look at women with titles. In her article in The Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 10, No. 3, Pat Dalton reviewed some such ladies.   Of course the term "lady" is a title granted to a certain class, but in late Victorian times it was becoming a title based on behavior and deportment as well. Which characters might we be talking about here? It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles194 Episode 185: The Women of Influence Episode 190: The Working Gi

"Palmer and Pritchard were among the heads of their profession" [SPEC]   When he was facing off against Dr. Grimesby Roylott, Sherlock Holmes asserted "When a doctor does go wrong he is the first of criminals. He has nerve and he has knowledge. Palmer and Pritchard were among the heads of their profession."   Claiming that Roylott struck even deeper, we wondered: just what did Palmer and Pritchard do that might compare to Dr. Roylott's ophidian crimes? What we discovered was more than a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles193 William Palmer (Wikipedia) Edward Pritchard (Wikipedia)   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Ch

"Philosophy, astronomy, and politics were marked at zero," [FIVE]  Sherlock Holmes called Professor Moriarty "a genius, a philosopher, and abstract thinker" in "The Final Problem." But what did Holmes know about philosophy? According to Watson's initial list titled Sherlock Holmes—His Limits, his knowledge of philosophy was "Nil."   But Holmes called out a few philosophers by name, and had an attitude that reflected a combination of traditional and modern British philosophy. Join us to ponder this Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles192   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: W

"once a clergyman, always a clergyman" [SOLI]    We see influences of religion here and there in the Sherlock Holmes stories. From Biblical references in "The Crooked Man" to the then-mysterious religion of Mormonism, we see the world of Holmes and Watson as it occasionally intersects with these influences.    But what about the men of the cloth we encounter? Who were they? Which stories did they appear in? And what religions did they represent? It's just a Trifle.     Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles191 Danites in popular culture Nonconformist   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Wash

"in the capacity of governess" [SIGN]  Sherlock Holmes had a number of clients who were women, and in certain cases, they were gainfully employed. In her article in The Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 10, No. 2, Patsy Dalton takes us through some of these clients.   What was the status of the "working girl" at the time, and what range of professions do we see from them? How do these roles bear on their consideration in society? It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles190 Episode 185: The Women of Influence The Sherlock Holmes Journal   Sponsor The BSI Press   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington,

"My old friend Charlie Peace was a violin virtuoso" [ILLU]    No, Charlie Peace was not a colleague of Norman Neruda or Sarasate. He was a notorious criminal, convicted of killing a policeman and the husband of a neighbor with whom he became obsessed.   How did Sherlock Holmes know him? Were they acquainted through the world of music, or perhaps in the underground world of crime? Come with us: it's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles189 Charles Peace (Wikipedia) Charlie Peace (History by the Yard)   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Mar

"I have made a small study of tattoo marks" [REDH]  Tattoos. A rare topic in the Sherlock Holmes story, yet they're key in helping Sherlock Holmes to discern a little more about a few individuals.   How common were tattoos in Victorian England? Where did they originate? And who in the Canon had them? It's just a Trifle.     Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles188 History of tattooing (Wikipedia) Tattoos: The Ancient and Mysterious History (Smithsonian)   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0   --  

"there never was a man who deserved punishment more" [IDEN]  There are certain instances in the Sherlock Holmes stories where the villain is so foul, so deserving of punishment, that it's a relief to see them get theirs. It's justice served.   We can think of a couple, off the tops of our heads. Perhaps you have others in mind? It's just a Trifle.     Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts:   Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles        Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.   And please consider supporting our efforts through  Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles187 Previous episodes in this series: Episode 183 - Justice, Part 1: Unresolved Episode 184 - Justice, Part 2: Disproportionate   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: Unit

"This is unworthy of you, Holmes" [SIGN]  Sherlock Holmes wasn't an easy man to live with. Still, it's impressive that Watson didn't unload on him more frequently. Or perhaps he did and just didn't report it... What is it about Holmes's personality that made him caustic? And about Watson's that allowed him to endure it. It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles186 Also mentioned: Episode 130 - Watson's Club   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0   --  

"accomplished, a wonder woman in every way" [ILLU]   Each month, we look at a piece of Sherlockian or Holmesian scholarship that might be outside of your ken, and discuss its merits or faults. This month, we look at Mollie Hardwick's "Women of the Canon: 1 - Women of Influence" from The Sherlock Holmes Journal, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Summer, 1972). Hardwick thought it was worth delving into who some of the powerful women were who were not Irene Adler. Is one of your favorites discussed? It's just a Trifle.     Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles    Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.   Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles185 Also by Mollie Hardwick: The Sherlock Holmes Companion (with Michael Hardwick)   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers:

"I do not feel justified in doing it" [HOUN]    In the last episode, we talked about the uncertainty of justice at the conclusion of some stories. Did the perpetrators find justice raining down on them? In some cases, it was left up to the reader's imagination.   This episode we're looking at some instances of justice that may not have been in proportion to the crime – or non crime, as the case may be.  It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles184   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0

"It's every man's business to see justice done" [CROO]    Everyone likes a neat ending. The case is solved, the criminal is caught, and justice is served.   But what about those Sherlock Holmes stories where the criminals escape? When the final action happens off-page or off-screen? There's not the same resolution there as when a Scotland Yard inspector claps handcuffs on the accused. Or is there?  It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles183   Sponsor The Baker Street Journal   Music credits Performers: Uncredited violinist, US Marine Chamber Orchestra Publisher Info.: Washington, DC: United States Marine Band Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0   --

"the writer was on board of a ship." [FIVE]  We were inspired by two articles in the Baker Street Journal, some forty years apart. Each made a study of ships' names in the Sherlock Holmes stories.   Of the named sailing vessels, what can we infer from those named after women? Unlike some of the other ships in the Canon, they're not listed in Lloyd's Register. Was it a Watsonian influence regarding the fair sex?  It's just a Trifle. Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles      Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles182 Richard W. Clark's "On the Nomenclature of Watson's Ships" (BSJ Vol 1, No 2, 1946) and Donald Redmond's "Ship Ahoy, Captain Basil" (BSJ Vol 36, No 4, 1986) Mobile Holmes   Sponsor The BSI Press   Music cr

"an historical curiosity" [MUSG]  It's the third week of the month, which means it's our regular feature in Season 4: Mr. Sherlock Holmes the Theorist, the episode in which we investigate an old piece of Sherlockian scholarship and offer our commentary. This month, we feature "The Historicity of Sherlock Holmes" by Prof. Dirk J. Struik. Presented to the Speckled Band of Boston, it first appeared in print in the 1947 publication The Second Cab. Professor Struik's own association with the Band is just as interesting as his paper.  It's just a Trifle.   Find Trifles wherever you listen to podcasts: Listen to Sherlock Holmes: Trifles    Have you left us a rating and review on Apple Podcasts yet? You don't need to own an Apple device, and every review helps more people find the show.  And please consider supporting our efforts through Patreon or PayPal.     Links / Notes This episode: ihose.co/trifles181 The Second Cab / The Best of the Cabs (AbeBooks) I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere Episode 135: Hel