Scottish man finds lost Sherlock Holmes story from 1904 in attic
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Friday, February 20, 2015, 9:18 AM
SWNS.COMWalter Elliot, 80, found a short Sherlock Holmes story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in his attic while looking through papers for a local pop-up museum.
In this mystery, Sherlock Holmes was the one who went missing.
A Scottish man discovered a lost Sherlock Holmes story in his attic, more than 80 years after the last tale was published, according to the SWNS Media Group
Walter Elliot, 80, said he found the 1904 short story, "Sherlock Holmes: Discovering the Border Burgs and, by Deduction, the Brig Bazaar," while looking through old papers to display in a local pop-up museum.
The 1,300-word story was nestled inside a long-forgotten pamphlet that a friend had given to him more than 50 years ago, Elliot said.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote the piece for a 48-page booklet to raise money for a bridge in Selkirk, Scotland, Elliot said. The pamphlet, with stories by local authors, was called "The Book o' Brig" after the name of the wood bridge that washed away in a flood in 1902.
The “Book o’ Brig” was sold during a town fundraising bazaar in 1904 and netted about $633, "which was quite a sum back then," Elliot said. The funds helped the town build an iron bridge, which still stands.
The bazaar opened with a lecture from the famed author, according to a schedule of events in the booklet.
"He really must have thought enough of the town to come down and take part and contribute a story to the book," Elliot said.
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Although Doyle was born in Edinburgh, he visited Selkirk often, SWNS reported.
The story opens with a journalist hunting down the sleuth detective in London for a quote. He finds Holmes talking with his sidekick, Dr. John Watson, about a trip to Edinburgh to solve the "mysteries of the Secret Cabinet." Watson declines to join the journey because he is going elsewhere that day. Holmes uses his deductive skills to guess where he's going — "to Selkirk in aide of a Bridge."
Elliot, a retired woodcutter, said he does not know how many of these pamphlets were made and sold. He also does not know if the story was published elsewhere.
"Usually people would throw out these books or sell them off," the great-grandfather said. "I've always been interested in history and my family has always passed on stories and I suppose this was one of the stories that was passed down."
It's not the first time a long-lost story from a famous author has been discovered recently. "To Kill A Mockingbird" author Harper Lee made waves earlier this month when her publisher announced her lawyer found the original manuscript for a second book.
Doyle, born in 1859, wrote four Sherlock Holmes novels and numerous short stories before he died in 1930, according to Stanford University. He initially tried to kill off the detective in 1893 after growing tired of writing about him, but he brought the character back to life in a story nine years later.
The story of the “Brig Bazaar” can be read on the Daily Record's website or seen in person at Selkirk's Pop Up Community Museum from Feb. 21 through March 1.
Wow, Nan, that is really something! Imagine this man's surprise when he discovered this! I can just picture it, can't you?
ReplyDeleteI have not had much time for blogging or reading the BBC online, like I usually do. When I hear more of this, I will remember I read it on your blog first!
Isn't that amazing news! Thanks for the details... I saw a tiny mention of it in the crummy daily newspaper we get here and meant to look it up but I forgot. I jbought the complete Sherlock collection for my Kindle and have been dipping into it for over a year! I always have at least a couple of books going on at once depending on my mood and available reading time. And I'm a big believer in your sidebar about any book you haven't read bring a new one.
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