#veil acd

[materialofonebeing]

Holmes:  “Perhaps you would care to read the papers?”

Watson:  “Could you not give me the points?”

Holmes:  “That is very easily done.”

  -- The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger, in which Holmes’s summary of the points included the fineness of the lion, the name of the clown, and the constable’s next job.

[materialofonebeing]

In The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger, Watson’s adventure:  listening, lunch, a cab ride, and listening some more -- spending the day with Holmes.  

[satan-in-a-tea-cup]

watson in the beginning of VEIL:

dear readers, there are sooo many stories and i have a hard time deciding if i should go with one of the more exceptional stories or one that better shows how exceptional my consulting husband is. arrrgh ok i’m gonna for the better story.

PLOT TWIST

holmes turned out to be exceptional with compassion and kindness.

so there really was no need for watson to choose in the first place. this story fits both watson’s categories if one counts holmes’ heart and not only his brains.

[sarahthecoat]

The Adventure of the Veiled Lodger

I finally found an audiobook version! And it’s read by Christopher Lee! what a treat.

This story has always seemed a bit odd to me, since it’s nearly all told in retrospect. The landlady, Mrs Merrilow, comes and tells about how Mrs Ronder came to lodge with her years ago, then Holmes consults his scrapbooks about the death of Mr Ronder some years past, and then Mrs Ronder herself fills in the story. Really the only present excitement, is Holmes’ twigging on her having become suicidal, and speaking up to urge her not to kill herself.

This story does ring changes on many recurring themes though. Mrs Ronder was an abused wife, but in this case, it all happened in the past, Holmes was not able to help her during that time. There are other stories in which someone is mauled by a beast (dogs, off the top of my head, in COPP and HOUN), and again, too far in the past for Watson to come to the rescue with his good aim.

It also in a way echoes the events of FINA, in that Mrs Ronder and Leonardo had a plan for how to deal with Mr Ronder, and Leonardo did part of it, he did kill Mr Ronder, but then he left Mrs Ronder to her fate, when he should have stayed by her side and protected her. I wonder how Watson and Holmes see themselves reflected, whether each one sees himself as the one who left when he should have stayed. At least it wasn’t cowardice as it was with Leonardo.

[travelingwithoutthedoctor]

Watson, the original Sherlock Holmes fanboy is back.

[satan-in-a-tea-cup]

When I arrived I found him seated in a smoke-laden atmosphere, with an elderly, motherly woman of the buxom landlady type in the corresponding chair in front of him. “This is Mrs. Merrilow, of South Brixton,” said my friend with a wave of the hand. “Mrs. Merrilow does not object to tobacco, Watson, if you wish to indulge your filthy habits.

VEIL ACD

omg holmes sitting in a cloud of smoke but calling watson filthy. <3

[travelingwithoutthedoctor]

And there is this BBC radio audioplay of The Veiled Lodger.

[travelingwithoutthedoctor]

There is this audioplay of The Veiled Lodger.