by Bill Peschel
The following stories appeared under the title “The Adventures of Picklock Holes” and were given a number (e.g., “No. I”) to identify them as part of a series: “The Bishop’s Crime” (Aug. 12, 1893); “The Duke’s Feather” (Aug. 19, 1893); “Lady Hilda’s Mystery” (Aug. 26, 1893); “The Escape of the Bull-Dog” (Sept. 2, 1893); “The Hungarian Diamond” (Oct. 7, 1893); “The Umbrosa Burglary” (Nov. 4, 1893); “The Stolen March” (Dec. 23 and Dec. 30, 1893); “Picklock’s Disappearance” (Jan. 13, 1894).
The following Picklock Holes stories appeared under the title “Picky Back” and were given a title by the editor: “The Return of Picklock” (Oct. 14, 1903); “The Story of the Russian Anarchist” (Dec. 2, 1903); “A Scandal in Paflagonia” (Dec. 30, 1903).
The following Picklock Holes stories appeared under the title “Picky Back”: “The Notch in the Tulwar” (Nov. 4, 1903, as “II.—The Notch in the Tulwar”); “The Story of the Princess” (Jan. 13, 1904); “The Story of the Lamplighter” (Feb. 3, 1904); “The Adventure of the Swiss Banker” (Feb. 17, 1904); “The Story of the Lost Picklock” (March 2, 1904).
The following Picklock Holes story was reprinted with only its original title: “His Final Arrow” (Feb. 13, 1918).
The following reviews were in the “Our Booking-Office” column with the title added by the editor: “A Physiologist’s Wife” (Sept. 13, 1890); “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” (Dec. 10, 1890); “The Great Boer War I” (Nov. 14, 1900); “The Hound of the Baskervilles” (April, 23, 1902); “The Great Boer War II” (Nov. 5, 1902); “Sir Nigel” (Dec. 12, 1906); “The Last Galley” (May 31, 1911); “The Lost World” (July 8, 1914); “The Valley of Fear” (June 30, 1915); “His Last Bow” (Nov. 7, 1917); “Danger! and Other Stories” (Jan. 8, 1919).
The following items were from the “Charivaria” column with the title added by the editor: “Misfire” (July 22, 1908); “Holmes’ Death” (Nov. 14, 1917); “On the River” (Sept. 10, 1919).
The following items were briefs with the title added by the editor: “Crime Briefs” (“Where is He?”, Nov. 3, 1894; “On the List,” Nov. 17, 1894); “The Sign of Faure” (Sept. 4, 1897); “Holmes Redivivus” (Oct. 14, 1903); “Holmes Arrested” (June 9, 1915); “The De Keyser Case” (June 9, 1920); “Mrs. Asquith Remembers” (Aug. 25, 1920); “Australia” (April 13, 1921); “Telepathic Dog” (Sept. 28, 1921); “Put and Take” (Jan. 11, 1922); “Witchcraft” (Nov. 22, 1922).
Bibliography
Brigham, Allan. “Is Town v Gown a Thing of the Past?” http://www.colc.co.uk/cambridge/tours/article2.htm, accessed Sept. 28, 2014.
Hastings, Selina. Rosamund Lehmann. London: Chatto & Windus, 2002.
Higham, Charles. The Adventures of Conan Doyle. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 1976.
Jasen, David A. P.G. Wodehouse—A Portrait of a Master. New York: Schirmer Trade Books, 2002.
Lehmann, John. The Whispering Gallery. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1955.
Lellenberg, Jon, and Daniel Stashower and Charles Foley. Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters. New York: The Penguin Press, 2007.
LeStourgeon, Diana E. Rosamond Lehmann. New York: Twayne Publishers, Inc., 1965.
Lycett, Andrew. The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: The Life and Times of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. New York: Free Press, 2008.
McCrum, Robert. Wodehouse. New York: W.W. Norton, 2004.
Miller, Russell. The Adventures of Arthur Conan Doyle. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2008.
Montgomery, Hugh and Philip George Cambray. A Dictionary of Political Phrases and Allusions. London: E.P. Dutton & Co., 1906.
Punch. “History of Punch.” http://www.punch.co.uk/about/, accessed Sept. 19, 2014.
Rice, F.A. The Granta and its Contributors, 1889-1914. London: Constable and Co. Ltd., 1924.
Sengupta, Arunabha.” July 7, 1930: Death of a curious cricketer – Arthur Conan Doyle.” http://www.cricketcountry.com/ articles/july-7-1930-death-of-a-curious-cricketer-arthur-conan-doyle-16090, accessed May 28, 2014.
Spielmann, Marion Harry. The History of ‘Punch’. London: Cassell and Co. Ltd., 1895.
Stashower, Daniel. The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle. New York: Henry Holt, 1999.
Sydney Mail. “Town and Gown Riots at Cambridge.” Jan. 8, 1876, page 13. http://news.google.com/newspapers? nid=1302&dat=18760108&id=dBYQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TJMDAAAAIBAJ&pg=3404,374992, accessed Sept. 28, 2014.
Urban75. “London: Two Centuries of Gas Lighting.” http://www.urban75.org/london/london-gas-lamps-and-gaslighting.html, accessed Sept. 24, 2014.
Wikipedia. The Rowers of Vanity Fair/Lehmann RC. https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/The_Rowers_of_Vanity_Fair/Lehmann_RC, accessed May 22, 2014.
Wodehouse, P.G. Grit: A Talk with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Madame Eulalie’s Rare Plums, http://www.madameulalie.org/vc/Grit.html, accessed May 28, 2014.
Wodehouse, P.G., and Barry Day and Tony Ring (editors). In His Own Words. Woodstock, N.Y.: The Overlook Press, 2001.
About the Editor
Bill Peschel is a recovering journalist who shares a Pulitzer Prize with the staff of The Patriot-News in Harrisburg, Pa. He also is a mystery fan who has run the Wimsey Annotations at www.planetpeschel.com for nearly two decades. He is the author of “Writers Gone Wild” (Penguin). Through Peschel Press he publishes Sherlock parodies and pastiches in the 223B Casebook series and annotated editions of Dorothy L. Sayers’ “Whose Body?” and Agatha Christie’s “The Mysterious Affair at Styles” and “The Secret Adversary.” He lives with his family, dog and two cats in Hershey, where the air really does smell like chocolate.
Books by Bill Peschel and from the Peschel Press
Click on these links to find out more information from my web sites about these books. Or, simply visit Planet Peschel or Peschel Press
The Life & Career of Dr. William Palmer of Rugeley
By George Fletcher
The Deluxe Complete, Annotated Secret Adversary
By Agatha Christie
The Complete, Annotated Mysterious Affair at Styles
By Agatha Christie
The Complete, Annotated Whose Body?
By Dorothy L. Sayers
Writers Gone Wild
Coming in 2015 in the 223B Casebook series
Sherlock Holmes Parodies and Pastiches from the Victorian Era
Sherlock Holmes Parodies and Pastiches from the Edwardian Age
Sherlock Holmes Parodies and Pastiches from the Great War Era
Sherlock Holmes Parodies and Pastiches from the Jazz Age
Coming in 2015 in the Rugeley Poisoner series
The Illustrated Life of William Palmer
The Illustrated Times Trial of William Palmer
THE EARLY PUNCH PARODIES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES. Format, notes and essays copyright 2014 Bill Peschel. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of the notes or essays may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission except in cases of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information, email [email protected] or write to P.O. Box 132, Hershey, PA 17033.
“The Humorist’s Curse” ©2014 by Bill Peschel.
Smashwords Edition
Some illustrations and stories reproduced with permission of Punch Ltd., www.punch.co.uk.
For more information about our books, visit:
www.peschelpress.com.
Footnotes
[back] Bird’s-eye: Tobacco made from the whole leaf, including the stem. When the tobacco is cut, the stem pieces look like a bird’s eye.
[back] Second class: British passenger trains provided accommodations in three classes. The amenities varied; a first-class ticket could also come with access to the smoking-carriage, meals in the first-class dining car (with a better menu and more comfortable seating than in the other classes) and free newspapers.
[back] Lucifer: A match that can be set alight by striking it on any rough surface. A lucifer is a clever nod to the word’s Latin origins. The word is derived from luc- for
“light” and –fer for “bearing.” It appears in Isaiah 14:12 as a sarcastic reference to the king of Babylon and his downfall: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!” It was only when Jesus quoted this passage in Luke 10:18 that Lucifer became identified with Satan.
[back] Perspicacity: Capable of great insight and understanding. From the Latin perspicere for “discern.”
[back] Evening Standard: An evening newspaper founded in 1827 and still in existence. The Standard was noted for its detailed foreign news, and the evening edition focused on giving copious details of the morning’s news. Newspapers went to press several times during the day, so Holes’ request for a “special” meant he wanted an off-cycle edition that contained the latest breaking news. In 2009, it was bought by a Russian businessman and former KGB agent, renamed the London Evening Standard and converted into a free tabloid.
[back] Weird: Weird in a supernatural or unearthly sense. From the Old English wyrd for “destiny.” Popularized after Shakespeare characterized the witches in “Macbeth” as weird sisters.
[back] Irkousk: An archaic spelling of Irkutsk, one of the largest cities in the Siberian region of Russia.
[back] Nihilist: A Russian political movement—the name means “nothing”—that rejects all authority and advocates violence to bring about change. The group rose in prominence after they assassinated several government officials. In 1881, after several attempts bombers succeeded in killing Tsar Alexander II days before he would announce a move to a constitutional democracy.
[back] Charing-Cross Station: A railway station in the City of Westminster. It is located at Charing Cross Road and the Strand.
[back] Scarlatina: Scarlet fever, an infectious disease that commonly affects children. Midshipmen in the Royal Navy were typically boys who, until the mid-19th century, entered the service as young as 12 years old.
[back] Mess-jacket: A formal jacket that ended at the waist, used in the military to wear to formal evening occasions such as dinners or balls. The mess describes the area where military personnel eat, and is derived from the Old French mes for “portion of food.” The word has been in use since the 15th century.
[back] Fortnightly Review: An intellectual literary and political magazine founded in 1865 that published articles by literary figures such as Anthony Trollope (who was one of the founders), George Meredith, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, and Algernon Swinburne.
[back] Moujik: The word is an archaic Russian spelling of peasant, so a moujik blouse is a loose-fitting shirt peasants would wear.
[back] Berlin worsted: Worsted is a smooth yarn spun from wool, typically used for suits. From Worstead, a parish in Norfolk that was a manufacturing center for cloth in the 12th century.
[back] Times: A daily newspaper founded in 1785. This is the “original” Times, its name appropriated by newspapers around the world, including The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times. The leading article refers to the newspaper’s top story, infused with the editor’s distinctive voice and opinions.
[back] Bokhara: An archaic name for Bukhara, Uzbekistan’s fifth-largest city. Located on the Silk Road, it has been occupied for at least 5,000 years.
[back] That very morning: Balkh: A small town in northern Afghanistan. The ancient city was much larger and notable as the center of the Zoroastrian religion and called a “noble and great city” by Marco Polo. Sarmacand: An archaic spelling of Samarkand, a city in eastern Uzbekistan found on the Silk Road. It was the capital of Tamerlane’s empire. kirghiz: Lehmann mistook the name, an archaic spelling of Kyrgyz, for the Turkish people primarily native to Kyrgyzstan.
[back] Concomitant: Recognition that a natural association exists between two things. From the late Latin word for “accompanying.”
[back] Deep consideration: Holes is aping a favorite pose of Holmes when deeply listening to someone’s problem or thinking.
[back] Hadrian: A Roman emperor (76-138) whose empire stretched from North Africa to the north of today’s England (specifically Hadrian’s Wall), and from Spain in the west to Armenia and Syria to the east.
[back] Salaamed: A salute that accompanies saying “Salam,” the Arabic word for “peace.” Depending on the country and the relation between greeter and greeted, the gesture can involve a handshake with the right hand, placing the right hand over the heart, brief kisses on the cheek or kissing the elder’s ring.
[back] Proctor: A university official who, among other duties, would be responsible for enforcing discipline, to the point of patrolling the streets with the right to arrest and punish undesirable characters who are not members of the university. This right was abolished in 1904.
[back] Purlieus: An district or neighborhood near a place. Derived from the Anglo-Norman French puralee for “a going round to settle the boundaries.”
[back] St. Baldred’s: There is no such college at Cambridge. The saint (d. 757) founded a monetary in Tyninghame, Scotland, but also lived as a hermit at times.
[back] Town and gown riots: Cambridge University was founded in the 1200s by some Oxford students chased out of town after a disturbance, possibly over a prostitute. Ever since, tensions between townspeople and students flared up into fights, vandalism, and even rioting.
The battle between town and gown was in part a class struggle, as working-class youths resented the attitudes of the mostly aristocratic students. Residents also resented having to take low-paying jobs at the university that required them to cater to “their betters.” The requirement that students wear gowns, a by-product of their medieval clerical status, made them obvious targets for a fight.
There wasn’t a riot in 1870, but one newspaper report in January of 1876 conveys the flavor of these clashes:
“These disgraceful November exhibitions were renewed at a crowded promenade concert given in the New Corn Exchange. The disturbance was commenced and continued by undergraduates, and on the police being called in to expel the offenders a fight ensued, the consequences of which was that seven or eight members of the University were arrested. The riot was continued outside, and an unsuccessful attempt was made to storm the temporary lock-up in the Guildhall and rescue the prisoners. At a late hour the streets were full of a noisy mob of University men and townsmen. The investigation of all these charges before the magistrates lasted throughout the following day.”
[back] Half-section: A military unit that, depending on its type, can consist of between three and eight men trained to move as a group.
[back] Brindled bull: Brown or tawny. Of Scandinavian origin.
[back] King’s Parade: A major street in Cambridge’s university area, popular with tourists and cyclists. It is named for King’s College, located on the west side of the street.
[back] Esquire Bedell: A university official whose duties varied widely over the last eight centuries. In the Victorian era, they were responsible for conducting ceremonies and ensuring the correct wearing of ceremonial dress.
[back] LL.D. honoris causa: An honorary degree – the phrase is Latin for “for the sake of the honor” – in this case as a Doctor of Laws.
[back] Cuirassier: A cavalry regiment that wears a cuirass, a piece of armor consisting of a front and a back plate. Cuirass is from the Latin corium for leather, the original material from which cuirasses were made.
[back] M. Paul Deroulède: A French author and politician (1846-1914) who promoted patriotism in his writings and through the Ligue des Patriots. Under his leadership, he turned the group towards governmental reforms that led to his being tried on conspiracy charges that resulted in banishment from France for five years. (The M, by the way, is not part of Deroulède’s name, but an abbreviation for monsieur).
[back] Goorkhas: Archaic spelling of Gurkhas, an indigenous people of Nepal. Gurkhas were recruited into the British Army during its occupation of India and many continue to serve there today. They have a reputation as highly skilled and courageous fighter
s.
