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Third short-story collection, originally serialised in The Strand Magazine (1903–04), collected 1905. Thirteen stories narrated by John Watson. Marks Holmes’s return after a ten-year “death” — Doyle was compelled to resurrect him by public demand and financial pressure. The first story (EMPT) resolves the Reichenbach cliffhanger from FINA.
Stories
| # | Code | Title | Notable for |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | EMPT | The Adventure of the Empty House | Holmes returns; Colonel Moran; air-gun; wax dummy at Baker Street |
| II | NORW | The Adventure of the Norwood Builder | Apparent murder; planted evidence; Holmes’s wax impression trick |
| III | DANC | The Adventure of the Dancing Men | Cipher story; Hilton Cubitt murdered; the dancing-men substitution cipher |
| IV | SOLI | The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist | A woman followed on a country road; secret marriage; Holmes intervenes |
| V | PRIO | The Adventure of the Priory School | Kidnapped boy; Duke’s secret son; Holmes at his most mercenary (a large fee) |
| VI | BLAC | The Adventure of Black Peter | Harpooned man; three men claim to be “Captain Basil”; sea captain’s history |
| VII | CHAS | The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton | The Canon’s greatest blackmailer; Holmes and Watson burgle his house; Milverton shot |
| VIII | SIXN | The Adventure of the Six Napoleons | Smashed plaster busts; Italian vendetta; a pearl hidden in a cast |
| IX | 3STU | The Adventure of the Three Students | Oxford/Cambridge flavour; a stolen scholarship exam; simple and elegant |
| X | GOLD | The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez | A dead secretary; a woman hiding in the victim’s own study |
| XI | MISS | The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter | A rugby player vanishes; a doctor’s secret; Holmes outwitted initially |
| XII | ABBE | The Adventure of the Abbey Grange | A murdered man; a widow; Holmes and Watson act as judge and jury |
| XIII | SECO | The Adventure of the Second Stain | Cabinet-level political crisis; a stolen letter; Lady Hilda Trelawney Hope |
Key takeaways
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EMPT resolves the decade-long cliffhanger of FINA. Holmes explains he survived using baritsu (a Japanese wrestling technique) to throw Moriarty over the Falls while clinging to the cliff. He then spent three years travelling under a false name (the “Great Hiatus”), visiting Tibet, Mecca, and working in a laboratory in Montpellier. The real threat now is Colonel Sebastian Moran — Moriarty’s chief of staff and the best heavy-game shot in India — who has been trying to kill Holmes. Holmes lures Moran into using an air-gun on a wax dummy of Holmes in the Baker Street window, then arrests him.
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DANC is one of the most beloved cipher stories in all detective fiction. The dancing-men symbols (a substitution cipher where stick figures represent letters) are used by Abe Slaney to communicate with a woman he once knew in Chicago. Holmes cracks the cipher but too late to prevent Hilton Cubitt’s murder.
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CHAS is ethically remarkable: Holmes breaks into Charles Augustus Milverton’s house with Watson to steal compromising letters, and when Milverton is shot dead by one of his victims while they hide and watch, Holmes refuses to identify the killer to the police. It is the story where Holmes most explicitly sets himself above the law.
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ABBE ends with Holmes and Watson acquitting a suspect themselves — they decide the man is morally innocent and arrange the evidence accordingly. Another case of Holmes’s private justice overriding official procedure.
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SECO is a satisfying political thriller closing the collection; a Cabinet minister’s career and a treaty depend on recovering a stolen document. Lady Hilda is one of the more active and resourceful female characters in the Canon.
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PRIO contains a famous moment: Holmes extracts a cheque for £6,000 from the Duke of Holdernesse, pockets it, and remarks that it is the highest fee he has ever earned. His mercenary side is rarely so baldly displayed.
New entities introduced
- Colonel Sebastian Moran — Moriarty’s chief of staff; “the best heavy-game shot our Indian Empire has ever produced”; antagonist of EMPT
- Charles Augustus Milverton — “the worst man in London”; the Canon’s definitive blackmailer (CHAS)
Illustrations
Illustrated by Sidney Paget for The Strand Magazine (October 1903–December 1904). ~71 illustrations across all 13 stories — the last Holmes work Paget illustrated before his death in 1908.
| Code | Story | Illustrations |
|---|---|---|
| EMPT | The Adventure of the Empty House | 7 |
| NORW | The Adventure of the Norwood Builder | 7 |
| DANC | The Adventure of the Dancing Men | 9 |
| SOLI | The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist | 7 |
| PRIO | The Adventure of the Priory School | 10 |
| BLAC | The Adventure of Black Peter | 7 |
| CHAS | The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton | — |
| SIXN | The Adventure of the Six Napoleons | — |
| 3STU | The Adventure of the Three Students | — |
| GOLD | The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez | — |
| MISS | The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter | — |
| ABBE | The Adventure of the Abbey Grange | — |
| SECO | The Adventure of the Second Stain | — |
Browse all: Return category on Wikimedia Commons
EMPT — The Adventure of the Empty House · all 7
NORW — The Adventure of the Norwood Builder · all 7
DANC — The Adventure of the Dancing Men · all 9
SOLI — The Adventure of the Solitary Cyclist · all 7
PRIO — The Adventure of the Priory School · all 10
BLAC — The Adventure of Black Peter · all 7
CHAS — The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton · all 6
SIXN — The Adventure of the Six Napoleons · all 7
3STU — The Adventure of the Three Students · all 7
GOLD — The Adventure of the Golden Pince-Nez · all 3
MISS — The Adventure of the Missing Three-Quarter · all 7
ABBE — The Adventure of the Abbey Grange · all 9
SECO — The Adventure of the Second Stain · all 3
