A Study In Bohemia By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

            The novel that I have read this month is A Scandal In Bohemia by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle which tells the story of the battle of wits between Sherlock Holmes with a wise woman that had managed to fool him. The story begins as Dr. Watson is paying Sherlock Holmes a visit, while they receive a guest who introducing himself as Count Von Kramm, an agent for a wealthy client. However, Sherlock discovers that the guest is the future King of Bohemia after a short meeting. After realising Sherlock has managed to expose his real identity, he started to describes that he had an affair with a woman who called Irene Adler. The future King also tells Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson that the woman has a photograph of them together which can ruin his future royal marriage. Therefore, he hires Sherlock to steal the photograph back and he is willing to cover any expenses. After the future King had left, they start their investigation to locate the photograph.

            The most interesting event in the novel would be when Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson break into Adler’s house. Sherlock changes his costume and general look before they break in. After that, both of them depart Baker Street for Adler’s house. When Holmes and Watson arrive, a group of jobless men meander throughout the street. When Adler's coach pulls up, Holmes enacts his plan. A fight breaks out between the men on the street over who gets to help Adler. Holmes rushes into the fight to protect Adler, and is seemingly struck and injured. Adler takes him into her sitting room, where Holmes motions for her to have the window opened. As Holmes lifts his hand, Watson recognizes a pre-arranged signal and tosses in a plumber's smoke rocket. While smoke billows out of the building, Watson shouts "FIRE!" and the cry is echoed up and down the street. Holmes slips out of Adler's house and tells Watson what he saw. As Holmes expected, Adler rushed to get her most precious possession at the cry of "fire"—the photograph of herself and the King. Holmes was able to see that the picture was kept in a recess behind a sliding panel just above the right bell pull. He was unable to steal it at that moment because the coachman was watching him.

            However, Sherlock Holmes failed to catch Irene Adler in the next morning when they return to her house. Sherlock pulled out a photograph of Irene Adler herself in evening dress and a letter which directed to Sherlock. In the letter, Adler tells Holmes that he did very well in finding the photograph and fooling her with his disguises. Adler has also promised that she will keep the photograph only as protection and not to use it against the future King. At last, the future King of Bohemia asks Sherlock how he wants to be paid, he just asks for the photograph of Adler. Sherlock keeps it as a souvenir of the cleverness of Irene Adler.  

 And that was how a great scandal threatened to affect the kingdom of Bohemia, and how the best plans of Mr. Sherlock Holmes were beaten by a woman's wit. Sherlock Holmes used to make merry over the cleverness of woman, but he did not do it after the incident. And when he speaks of Irene Adler or refers to her photograph, it is always under the honorable title. To Sherlock Holmes, she is always the woman.

Koo Chong Jing

4 Cergas

31^st March 2014