The John Bennett Shaw bookplate - 1969

I've previously posted about some John Bennett Shaw items I have, which included some of his later Holiday greeting cards from the 1980s and 1990s.

As a continuation, I recently purchased a few items and among them was this gem. It's a Holiday card from 1969, and it launches Shaw's bookplate. Included inside is a pasted-in copy of Shaw's new bookplate. The primary content of the 'card' is an excerpt from the book "The Anatomy of Bibliomania" by Holbrook Jackson. 

The cover title is "On Choosing a Library for a Desert Island" and states "The shelf of the best books: books for pleasure, books for reference, books for mental expansion, books for peace of mind, What books would you choose?"

Inside is the excerpt:

Excerpt from an essay upon this subject taken from "The Anatomy of Bibliomania" by Holbrook Jackson

ON CHOOSING A LIBRARY FOR A DESERT ISLAND

Many have speculated upon which are the best books, and it is no easy matter to come to a conclusion where there are so many claimants ; especially is it difficult to decide upon what books, or book, were we confined to one, we would choose for an imprisonment, or of marooned on a desert island. Since this is a matter of familiar curiosity, what some of them have said upon it I shall briefly recount. The most fortunate of readers who may be forced to bring their libraries down to an irreducible minimum are these one-book-men whom I have discussed in an earlier chapter, for they have made a choice for all occasions. To make an enforced choice has innumerable problems not readily solved. Yet some have adventured, in theory at all events, to that end. Schopenhauer declared that if the Almighty had to stint him to a single book he would choose Helvetius, Mr. Justice McKinnon has put it on record, says Lewis Hind, that if he were cast on a desert island, he would find it difficult to decide between 'Pickwick' and 'Pride and Prejudice'. Compelled to limit himself to the reading of one book, Walter Jerrold would unhesitatingly decide upon Southey's Select Works of the British Poets, which he well class a library in a single volume. Leigh Hunt is divided, among poets, between Shakespeare and Spenser. Were I to sell me library, Diderot wrote, I would keep back Homer, Moses, and Richardson. Those two great Cambridge scholars, Henry Jackson and Henry Sidgwick, if limited to three books would have Shakespeare, Plato, and Aristotle.

Some, as I have shown in my dissertation on Readers of Books, have practised what they preached or preferred, and read one book over and over; but most claim a vaiety, even though it be within prescribed lmiits, as Rovert Southey, whose hypothetical library of twelve English authors contained Shakespeare, Chaucer, Spenser, and Milton; Lord Clarendon; Jackson, Jeremy Taylor, and South; Izaac Walton, Sydney's Arcadia, Fuller's Church History, and Sir Thomas Browne, his Hydriotaphia. Such a collection, he claims would prove an inexhaustible reservoir, a Bank of England, to its possessor. John Ruskin stoutly claimed that every reader who would keep out of the salt swamps of literature in these days of book deluge must seek to live on a little rock island of his own, with a spring and a lake in it, pure and good. Whatever other books would compose that pure and good lake, Homer, Plato, Aeschylus, Herodotus, Dante, Shakespeare, and Spenser would be there. If all the books in the world were in a blaze, the first twelve, Archdeacon Farrer would snatch out of the flames are, the Bible, the Imitatio Christi, Homer, Aeschylus, Thucydides, Tacitus, Virgil, Marcus Aurelious, Dante, Shakespeare, Milton, and Wordsworth; of living authors he would have rescued first Tennyson, Browning, and Ruskin. Edward Fitzgerald claims that in a library there should be only what is enduring and original, for, as Washington Irving puts out in his Sketch Book, when all that is worldly turns to dross around us, these only retain their steady value. Arnold Bennett would not include more than one novel in a list of twenty books for a Desert Island, it would be either The Brothers Karamazov, The Charterhouse of Parma, or The Woodlanders; but he says, Andre Gide, who as a youth made out such a list every quarter, would include no novels. At a banquet given to celebrate the completion of the Oxford Dictionary, Mr. Stanley Baldwin, then Prime Minister, told Professor Craigie that he chose that great work for his desert island reading; I could live with your Dictionary, he said; and he recalled that Lord Oxford not long since had said that if he were cast on a desert island, and could only have one work, he would have the forty volumes of Balzac.

After this, Shaw adds in his own hand:

I have made my choice and here it is pictured on my new Bookplate

 

And now let's itemise John Bennett Shaw BSI's Library for a desert island:

• The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
• The Dachshund Book 
• The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
• The Return of Sherlock Holmes
• The Holy Bible
• The Atlas of the World
• His Last Bow
• The World Alamanac
• The Valley of Fear
• Cookery
• Shakespeare
• The English Dictionary
• The Casebook of Sherlock Holmes
• The SIgn of Four
• The Constitution of USA
• Where to Eat and Sleep in America
• A Study in Scarlet
• The Hound of the Baskervilles

Distributed as a Holiday Greeting to the Friends of John Bennett Shaw and Sherlock Holmes. Tulsa, Oklahoma, December, a1969

And now for a Sherlockian bibliophile question: 

has anyone ever recreated Shaw's bookplate on a library shelf?

I'll post photos I receive here.

The Lost World and its journey

Recently I picked up a copy of The Lost World. It's a battered copy, but it's still one I love very much. 

It has the wonderful tan cover with donosaur prints across the cover. The publisher is listed as 'Henry Frowde. Hodder & Stoughton'. I can find surprisingly little about this 'large paper edition'. Frowde was known as a publisher of Bibles. Some bookseller copies state that  "1,000 copies were printed, of which 190 were bound in blue cloth (First State) in 1912 and the remaining 810 were issued in tan/brown cloth (Second State)". It appears the second state may have been published in 1914. The edition has thirteen illustration plates. Reviewing British newspapers does not show articles specifically referring to the release of this beautiful edition. How did it come to be? And why did it come to be? 

One of the interesting aspects of these editions are the meta 'cosplay' pictures of Professor Challenger, with the photograph being of Doyle himself dressed as Challenger. 

]

This particular book was given as a prize to Herbert Charles Stevens, a student at Waller Road School in London. At the time his teacher was William J Langridge and the award was in 1921. Tipped into the book I found another certificate, from the 'Royal Ordnance Factories' to H.C. Stevens 'for diligence & proficiency whilst serving as an apprentice engineer' for 1925-26. 

It's wonderful to think this prize book was well-loved (which is why it's a little battered), and hopefully was treasured. What did the book do between around 1914 and when it was awarded in 1921? Did it sit new on a shelf waiting to be awarded for six years?

The awardee was Herbert Charles Stevens. He lived in London, and it's not easy to track Herbert in 1911 and 1921 censuses because many didn't list their middle names. In the 1939 register (created at the start of World War 2) Herbert was living on Southwood Rd, New Eltham in London - a single 'Chartered Engineer' who was born on 27 May 1908. With Herbert were his parents Charles and Hilda Olive. The career, location (London) and age of Herbert in this register match with someone who would have been attending Waller Road School at the time - so we can guess that my copy of 'Lost World' was sitting on a shelf in Southwood Rd in 1939, and thankfully survived the London Blitz. Thankfully, Herbert also survived the blitz, and he died in the Greater London area in 1992 aged about 84 (Bexley, 11, 434). Who knows what happened to my 'Lost World' copy from that point on till it came into my hands this year (2025, from a bookstore in Preston).

1939 Register

Let's go further in this deep dive!! What about the teach who awarded the book? Well, William Langridge should be easier to track down as we know he was a teacher in 1921 - the year of a census. In 1921, William J Langridge was living at 111 Howson Rd, Lewisham, London - a 50 year-old London native and 'Schoolmaster' at the London County Council Waller Road School (very tidy!). With William was his wife Emma R, a retired Schoolmistress, and their daughter Gwyneth aged 13. William was still living with his daughter in 1939.

1921 Census

Well, maybe I did go a little too far with this deep diving into the awarder and awardee of this copy of the Lost World, but it shows what you can learn about the journey of a book and its bookplate!

The first meeting of the Bowery Ruffians !

I recently posted about the creation of the Bowery Ruffians, and am now returning from the FIRST MEETING of the Bowery Ruffians as part of the wonderful set of events that are collectively called the 'Baker Street Irregulars weekend' (sic). The Bowery features in the only mention of New York in the Canon, in the Red Circle: "Gennaro was able to do a service to an Italian gentleman--he saved him from some ruffians in the place called the Bowery, and so made a powerful friend."

Left: Bowery. Right: Some Ruffians wait for The Wren to open (while a piano is wheeled down the street.... credit: Max Magee).

The rules? It takes at least two, the meeting must take place in the Bowery, and the only toasts can be to those nefarious criminals and ne'er-do-wells in the canon.

On Thursday 16th we gather at The Wren, a bar in the Bowery. Many had drifted over from a long lunch at the historic McSorley's Old Ale House. Each person who arrived was handed an agenda and a pin. The pin was designed by Kyle Brimacombe, and the rabbit and top hat motifs represent two prominent Bowery gangs in the 1850s onwards: The Bowery Boys were an anti-Catholic, anti-Irish criminal gang known for their top hats ; and the Dead Rabbits were an Irish Catholic gang.

 

There was a great turnout of first-time Ruffians, with possibly over 30 Sherlockians in attendance. Even the bar staff (thrilled with the business at 3 pm on a Thursday) were presented with pins.

After welcoming the Ruffians and outlining the rules of the gang, we got down to the real business.

Mickey Fromkin BSI ASH delivered the very first toast ever, and appropriately it was to a Red Circle character: Giuseppe Gorgiano. Mickey wrote this toast specifically for the meeting, and delivered it by heart:

Giuseppe Gorgiano,

He fills us with dread.

His beard it was black

And his circle was red. 

He threatened the Luccas,

Gennaro and wife,

Pursued them to London 

And paid with his life. 

I hereby declare this toast be recited by someone at every meeting of the Bowery Ruffians!! Next, Madeline Quiñones (of Michigan) toasted Moriarty, and then Rudy Altergott BSI (of Illinois) toasted Old Patrick (from The Dancing Men). I then called out for other toasts, not knowing what to expect. 

To my delight, we had some hits! First were a set of dueling toasts for two characters in the Hound of the Baskervilles from Karen Ellery (of Minnesota) and Carl Stix (of Nevada), in that order. 

KE:

The choice of a villain's a tough one, 
Hence this pause to review the right stuff... 

One Has, from his first showing, 

Set my dogged heart glowing: 

To The Hound! 

He's UNIQUELY a RUFF-ian!

CS responded from the other end of the bar:

Those who believe the hound is a villain are barking up the wrong tree. 
Stapleton is the villain of the story, as only a Ruffian would use a dog

-- a creature of love and devotion -- in such nefarious ways. 

Here is to Rodger Baskerville!

Fantastic! Max Magee (of Wisconsin) followed with a toast to Moriarty, and finally I toasted the Bowery Ruffians!

The toasts are underway! (Credit: Max Magee).

If you have a drink in the Bowery and quietly toast one of the many nefarious characters in the Canon, send me a photo and I'll send you a pin! 

Frustrated you can only be a Bowery Ruffian in New York? Don't be. If you have a drink with people anywhere with Bowery in the name, and it counts. For example you might be at Bowery Creek in the Catskills NY, or the community of Oak Bowery in Alabama, or Bowery Kitchen & Bar in Katoomba, New South Wales. They all count! Send a photo, and I'll send the pins!

   Credit: Karen Ellery

 

Jan 2025 a few books

At the BSI weekend last week I picked up some great books - some old and some new. I tried to exercise restraint, but here are two that I thought were quite interesting. I wanted to share two I'm pleased by, along with an extra book I picked up just before the weekend. 

The first is this copy of James Montgomery's Christmas Annual, titled 'A Study in Pictures'. This was published in 1954, and later re-published by Magico Magazine. This copy caught my attention as it is signed by James Montgomery. I have one other 

Next is a nice copy of 'The Ragged Shaw - The Master Sleuth Quizbook'. This is a collection of John Bennet Shaw's quizzes that he created over the years for use at courses and other activities. The copy I found was signed to renowned Sherlockian art collector Jerry Margolin, twice! The first was from JBS stating 'Jerry - a baffling book from a nutty Sherlockian', and the introduction by Ely Lickow (1924-2007) is also signed : '1/7/88 To Jerry Margolin (fellow enthusiast) hope you find the ragged Shaw smooth as fine wine. Canonical cheers,'. It's nice to have a signed copy.

Finally, here is a nice little dust jacket.

 

This American edition of 'His Law Bow' was published by Sun Dial Press (Garden City, New York) in 1937. The press also released an edition of The Return of Sherlock Holmes, as part of a series titled 'Hampton Court Edition'. The 

An Australian farewell to Sherlock, Register 1927

On Sherlock's purported birthday, January 6, I thought I'd post this delightful article written in 1927 by an Adelaide (Australia) columnist. It provides a delightful, and very Sherlockian, overview of the final stories written by Doyle.

The article touches on a lot of points we still discuss, but gets a few things wrong.

The author laments the loss of Holmes: "In some humble corner of such a Valhalla Sherlock and his Watson may find a place." Funnily enough, the journalist also discusses Doyle's lament that he is not better known for his literary works, but concludes "It is safe to say that 'The White Company,'' "Sir Nigel," and Brigadier Gerard will be remembered when the scientific Holmes will be famous only as the forerunner of the detective novel." Remarkable!

Enjoy!

The Register (Adelaide, SA : 1901 - 1929) 

Sat 6 Aug 1927

MEN, WOMEN, AND BOOKS,
BY AULDANA.

VALE SHERLOCK HOLMES.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle so dexterously snatched Sherlock Holmes from the jaws of death which had apparently seized him in "The Memoirs" that it would be a brave coroner who would pronounce on his remains; but in his latest volume of short stories, 'The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes" (John Murray, London), Sir Arthur has relieved the coroner of his task by giving us the last glimpse of the hero in a setting of triumph, with all flags flying and marvelous faculties unimpaired. With the certainty of a theatrical advertisement, Sir Arthur assures us that this is positively the final appearance of Mr. Holmes, who must go the way of all flesh. He likes to think that there is some fantastic limbo for the children of imagination; some strange impossible place where the Beaux of Fielding may still make love to the belles of Richardson. Where Scott's heroes may strut, and Thackeray's worldlings continue to carry on their reprehensible careers. In some humble corner of such a Valhalla Sherlock and his Watson may find a place.

Holmes began his long career in the very heart of the later Victorian era, marched brilliantly through the short reign of Edward VII., and still leads the growing company of valiant super men who have rallied to defeat the ends of crime in fiction. It must be with a tear that Sir Arthur says good-bye to his hero, who has not, after all, prevented his creator from pursuing, with his customary vigour, such varied branches of literature as history, poetry, the drama, and psychic research, although he fears that Holmes may perhaps have stood a little in the way of the recognition of his more serious work. Alas for the vanity of human wishes. Southey has been doomed to posterity as the author of the Battle of Blenheim, and Sir Arthur, who would be known as poet, historian, and play wright must rest on the laurels of Sherlock Holmes. But Sir Arthur is pessimistic. It is safe to say that 'The White Company,'' "Sir Nigel," and Brigadier Gerard will be remembered when the scientific Holmes will be famous only as the forerunner of the detective novel.

THE FAITHFUL WATSON.
In bidding adieu to the inimitable detective it is only fitting to give the faithful Watson his due. The last rites would not be complete without a tribute to the helpful doctor, and it is only fitting that Holmes himself should be chosen for the task. In "The Adventure of the Blanched Soldier" he tells his own story, in the absence of his 'dear Watson.' Speaking of his old friend and biographer, he might be Johnson talking of Boswell — 

"I would take this opportunity to remark that if I burden myself with a companion in my various little inquiries it is not done out of slentiment or caprice, but it is that Watson has some remarkable characteristics of his own, to which his modesty he has given small attention amid his exaggerated estimate of my own performances. A confederate who foresees your conclusions and course of action is always dangerous, but one to whom each development comes as a perpetual surprise and to whom the future is always a closed book, is, indeed, an ideal helpmate."

But Holmes is more human when, in "The Three Garridebs," Watson is wounded by a desperate criminal. Watson, indeed, feels that the years of single-minded service to his idol culminate in the moment of revelation when Holmeg cries: "You're not hurt, Watson? For God's sake, say that you are not hurt! The clear, hard eyes were dimmed for a moment, and the firm lips were shaking." 

Watson's own view of himself in relation to Holmes is that he is one of the great man's habits.

''As an institution I was like the violin, the shag tobacco, the old black pipe, the index book, and others perhaps less excusable. I was a whetstone for his mind. I stimulated him. He liked to think aloud in my presence. His remarks would hardly be said to be made to me — many of them would have been appropriately addressed to his bedstead— but none the less, having formed one habit, it had become in some way helpful that I should register and interject. If I irritated him by a certain methodical slowness in my mentality, that irritation served only to make his own flame-like intuitions and impressions flash up the more vividly and swiftly."

LAST GLIMPSES.
Bulldog Drummond may set his jaw, Nelson Lee wrack his brains, Arsene Lupin juggle under the eyes of the police, but it takes Sherlock Holmes to deduce everything from nothing. For 40 years we have found him ''huddled up in his armchair with updrawn knees, his pipe in his mouth, and his brow furrowed with thought, clearly in the throes of some vexatious problem.  Coming with a start from the familiar reverie, he still greets Watson with a simple question that astounds the obliging doctor.

"A dog, my dear Watson," he says, "reflects the family life. Whoever saw a frisky dog in a gloomy family, or a sad dog in a happy one? Snarling people have snarling dogs, dangerous people have dangerous ones. And their passing moods may reflect the passing moods of others." "Surely a little far-fetched,'' says Watson, for —

A primrose of the river's brim,
A yellow primrose is to him,
And it is nothing more.

But "The Creeping Man," the story of a dog suddenly alienated from his master, whose nature has inexplicably changed, inexplicably, that is, until Holmes comes on the scene, proves the scientist's contention, and through the behaviour of the dog he disentangles another knotty thread.

THE LAST POST
We meet old friends in Professor Moriarty, Col. Sebastian Moran, and the redoubtable Austrian murderer Baron Gruner, whom Holmes tackles with no weapon but his wits, and the denouement comes with as complete a surprise to us as it does to Watson. In "The Lion's Mane," a mystery which baff1es the leading men of Scotland Yard, Holmes, through his amazing memory, picks up a tiny clue which would have meant nothing to the ordinary man, saves an innocent man from probable execution, and many lives from possible death. It is with a touching note of generosity that the great man makes his final appearance on the printed page, and it is with as much, if not more, regret than Sir Arthur, whose word we must take, that we shall see no more of his hero, that we say good-bye to the Holmes Saga.

Announcing the Bowery Ruffians

I'm starting a scion - The Bowery Ruffians! 

The Bowery Ruffians will meet in January for the first time, but can meet any other time when two or more Sherlockians gather. The rules? A meeting requires at least two Sherlockians (sorry ), and the meeting must take place in the Bowery, and the only toasts can be to those nefarious criminals and ne'er-do-wells in the canon. I believe Madeline Quiñones will toast our friend Moriarty.

The Bowery features in the only mention of New York in the Canon, in the Red Circle: "Gennaro was able to do a service to an Italian gentleman--he saved him from some ruffians in the place called the Bowery, and so made a powerful friend."

The rules? It takes at least two, and the meeting must take place in the Bowery, and the only toasts can be to those nefarious criminals and ne'er-do-wells in the canon. I believe Madeline Quiñones will toast our friend Moriarty.

I have pins - and if you meet us in the Bowery I'll give you a pin. Shout-out to Kyle Brimacombe for designing the pin.

When and where? Thursday Jan 16th 1025, 3:15 - 5 pm, very informal, at The Wren (344 Bowery) not far from McSorleys.

If you are free, come join the ruffians!

The Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual modern series

The Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual is a special issue that covers a single topic. I've previously posted about the first generation of Baker Street Journal Christmas Annuals published from 1956-1960. The final Christmas Annual in 1960 was produced with material prepared by Edgar W Smith prior to his death that year. The BSJ lived on, but from 1960 till 1997 the Baker Street Journal Christmas Annual was not produced, till it re-emerged again as a fine tradition in 1998.

Each Christmas Annual from 1998 onwards is effectively a monograph authored on a topic. The BSI page helpfully provides details of each Annual (1998-current).

Here is my set:

Below I've created a brief list of each Annual, the title and author(s). Many can be purchased through BSI, and copes come up for sale through resellers.

1998: "Entertainment and Fantasy": The 1940 BSI Dinner. By Jon L. Lellenberg, BSI. 

1999. The Best of the Pips Volume II: More Papers on the Sundial. Edited by Albert M. Rosenblatt, BSI. 

2000. History of the Silver Blaze. By Wayne B. Swift, BSI.

2001. On the Shoulders of Giants: Jack Tracy and the Encyclopaedia Sherlockiana by Christopher and Barbara Roden, BSIs.

2002. Tilting at Windmills: Denis Conan Doyle and the Baker Street Irregulars by Richard Lancelyn Green, BSI.

2003. "The Strength and Activity of Youth": The Junior Sherlockian Movement. By Stephen Clarkson, BSI.

2004. Dubious and Questionable Memories: A History of the Adventuresses of Sherlock Holmes. By Susan Rice, ASH, BSI, 2s.

2005. Once a Week in Baker Street: The Boucher-Green Years by H. Paul Jeffers, BSI.

2006. Quartering in the Fifties: The Sherlockian Correspondence of Colin Prestige by Nicholas Utechin, BSI.

2007. Rathbone Returns! A Misadventure Called Sherlock Holmes by S.E. Dahlinger, BSI & Glen Miranker, BSI. 

2008. Reading the Signs: Some Observations and Aperçus on Film and Television Adaptations of The Sign of the Four. By David F. Morrill, BSI.

2009. "Did you notice nothing curious about that advertisement?" By Peggy Perdue. 

2010. From Piff-Pouff to Backnecke: Ronald Knox and 100 Years of “Studies in the Literature of Sherlock Holmes” by Nicholas Utechin, BSI.

2011. First Lady by Mary Ann Bradley. Lenore Glen Offord was the first woman to be invested in the Baker Street Irregulars.

2012. Barrymore in Baker Street: “The Great Profile” Meets “The Great Detective,” and They Both Get Their Names Up in Lights by Sonia Fetherston.

2013. Disaster at the New Century. Sherlock Holmes: A New Play in Three Acts by Ouida Rathbone.

2014. The Only Actor Who Ever Got It Right: Douglas Wilmer as Sherlock Holmes. Edited by Elaine & Jonathan McCafferty. 

2015. Together Again for the First Time: Forty Years of The Seven-Per-Cent Solution. By Steven T. Doyle, BSI. 

2016. The Day after Christmas: First Encounters with Gillette's Silent Sherlock Holmes. Edited by Russell Merritt, BSI.

2017. "A Woman of Mystery": Helene Yuhasova, Poetess Laureate of the Baker Street Irregulars. 

2018. The Exhibitionists: Sherlock Holmes in London 1951 and New York 1952. By Mattias Boström and Nicholas Utechin. 

2019. Baring-Gould of Baker Street: The Life and Footprints of William S. Baring-Gould. By Julie McKuras, Timothy J. Johnson, Richard J. Sveum, and Gary Thaden. 

2020. The 100-Year Adventure of The Unique Hamlet. Edited by Richard Sveum.

2021. “The Dean of British Sherlockians”: A Celebration of the Life and Works of S. C. Roberts. 

2022. “A Lady Ventures into the Sacred Precincts”: Women on the Periphery of the BSI, 1940–1960. By Julie McKuras and Sonia Fetherston.

2023. John Bennett Shaw Remembered. Edited by Jim Hawkins.

Continuing to build the BSI library

I think in my very first post I stated that:

"my niche passion is books published by the 'Baker Street Irregulars'. This includes books published by the Press, earlier books published under that name, and the Baker Street Journal. I am often frustrated at small print runs and out of print books, and hope to share what I learn about BSI books and their content. I'll share the journey of bringing together all BSI books - of course it might never happen."

Little did I realise that it would be so difficult - I was naive - and as this blog will attest I have enjoyed other collecting goals that can provide satisfaction. A full list of books published by BSI can be found here. 

The latest two books have been tricky to find:

Left: Fifty Years in Baker Street. 2010. Jens Byskov Jensen provides a "50-year history of The Cimbrian Friends, a Danish scion society". 

As a side-note, this book has a non-ideal feature... on the cover an. 'owners label' has been affixed (why on the cover??). The owner was Mr. Charles Creager of Ohio. IMDB shows Creager acted as Inspectort Ferguson in "Sherlock Holmes" (2011) - Peter Blau tells me it was a re-make of Rathbone’s “The Women in Green”. No other Sherlockian connections to Creager are known. As an aside, I seem to recall being told by someone in Danish circles that there were 80 copies of this book published.

Right: Peter E. Blau: A Festschrift. 2018. "In celebration of the sixtieth anniversary of his receiving the Irregular Shilling, several friends of Peter banded together, under the editorship of Les Klinger, and produced this Festschrift in his honor. Printed in a very limited edition, it contains biographical information, photos, and reminiscences of Peter and his many contributions to The Baker Street Irregulars". I believe about 150 copies of this book were published - on the BSI page some books have the number of copies published, others like this have a statement like 'very limited edition', and others state nothing.

I'm certainly getting there in collecting it all, but it will take time. I also just finally completed the collection of all BSJ Christmas Annuals, and will post on that soon.

So here's where things stand... the bottom two shelves shown are all BSI publications, the upper shelf is not (with one exception, which is why I didn't crop it).

The search continues!!

Phosphorus and the Making of a Hellhound

I was going to write a blog post Sherlock Holmes @ 50 meeting in Minneapolis MN during July 2024. But really, I instantly saw SO MANY people sharing their experiences that I felt I couldn't add a great deal. What I decided to do instead in this long post is to discuss the topic of my talk at the meeting, and the subsequent article.

Some key points do need to be made about Sherlock Holmes @ 50. Summary: This meeting put professional organizations to shame. The structure of the meeting was wonderful, zero hiccups with IT, plenty of seating and food, and plenty of time to interact with others. Huge credit to Richard Sveum the Conference Chairman, Timothy Johnson who curates the UMN collection, and all the committee members.

The conference was organized by the Norwegian Explorers scion in partnership with the UMN libraries, and they do so every three years. 200 people descended on Minneapolis for the conference, which ran from Friday July 26 in the Givens Suite of the Andersen Library, with The Friends of the Sherlock Holmes Collections Annual Meeting held on late Friday afternoon, presentations and a banquet on the Saturday, and concluded on Sunday, July 28. In amongst all of that, there were tables selling books, art, and other goodies.

Before I go on I need to add a couple of my favorite photos of the time in MN:

At the Sherlock @50 exhibition created by the University of Minnesota Library collection, among other things there are FOUR Beeton's Christmas Annuals displayed together here. Truly remarkable.

At the Sherlock @50 exhibition created by the University of Minnesota Library collection, a Sidney Paget original illustration. "All afternoon he sat in the stall", created for The Red-Headed League.

At a wonderful Friday evening dinner at Dick Sveum's home. L-R: Max Magee, Glen Miranker, Peter Blau, the blog author, and Will Walsh.

45th Annual Saturday with Sherlock Holmes at the Pratt, 2024

TLDR: The event was streamed this year and can be watched at the Youtube link down the page!

Each year since 1980, Sherlockians have gathered in November at the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore to hear presentations. It was originally called the 'Weekend With Sherlock Holmes' with the first day for Sherlockian presentations and the second day for a Sherlock film screening and discussion. Over time it evolved into Saturday-only, and that is the current format. 

This year the Saturday with Sherlock Holmes returned, the 45th event, produced and hosted by Andy Solberg BSI. Each year a theme is introduced as a guiding principle, and this year it was "Arthur Conan Doyle, Dr Watson's Literary Agent".

This is the poster advertising the 2024 Saturday with Sherlock Holmes, and the speaker agenda is shown below. The agenda included Daniel Thomas BSI who has presented at all but one of the 45 meetings held to date! 

Agenda for the meeting. Chair: Andy Solberg, ASH, BSI

Peter Blau, BSI - Conan Doyles I Have Known

Daniel Thomas, BSI - Conan Doyle and the British Divorce

Matt Hall - Who Was R T Norman?

Carla Coupe, ASH, BSI - Born to be a Man of Action

S. Brent Morris - Conan Doyle and Spiritualism

Daniel Stashower, BSI - Conan Doyle and Howard Thurston

Karen Wilson, ASH, BSI - Conan Doyle and Cricket.

Ah yes, I spoke. Who Was R T Norman? Well, watch the Youtube recording here to find out.... I have an article coming out on the topic and will post more then.

The good news for both my readers is that a long description of the symoosium presentations is not required.... as it can be watched here! Peter Blau's tales of meeting Conan Doyle relatives were quite gripping. Karen Wilson entertained with a wonderful Sherlockian song! 

To the recording:

Timestamps (to allow people to jump to a specific talk)

Andy Solberg Introduction: 0 min 0 sec

Peter Blau: 15 min 35 sec

Daniel Thomas: 31 min 25 sec

Matt Hall: 51 min 45 sec

Carla Coupe: 1 h 6 min 15 sec

S. Brent Morris: 1 h 21 min 15 sec

Daniel Stashower: 1 h 58 min 15 sec

Karen Wilson: 2 h 12 min 15 sec

To round out this record of a wonderful Sherlockian day, Daniel Stashower shared some photographs of speakers.

Peter Blau, BSI

The author

Carla Coupe, ASH, BSI

S. Brent Morris

Karen Wilson, ASH, BSI

Till 2025... 

Sherlock Holmes Society of Western Australia

In sifting through some books I purchased at an Australian auction, the set included a small number of random Sherlockian papers related to scion activities. The papers included some mail-outs sheets from the Sherlock Holmes Society of Western Australia. I think this is worth transcribing to share some background on the scion, as they do not currently have an active web page (though they do have a Facebook page).

The two-sided page is not dated, but is likely from the 1980s, as that is when all the other Sherlockian newsletters are dated from the same collection. Charles Schofield QC, the President of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London, died in 1993 aged 91.

The Sherlock Holmes Society of Western Australia

The. Society was started in February, 1983 shortly after a visit to Perth by Mr. Charles Scholefield QC (also known as Professor Moriarty), then President of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London. He has since consented to become Patron of our Society.

To be eligible to join one must profess Sherlock Holmes to be 'the best and wisest man whom I have ever known'. Membership involves attending three Society meetings and passing a short examination on the Canon which is set by the Society. 

The membership fee is $10:00 per person per year; family membership is $15:00. The Society meets on the last Saturday of each month (except December) and these meetings, which are generally informal, are intended to heighten enjoyment of the books.

A quarterly newsletter known as the "Western Flyer" comes out in March, July, September and December each year. This is devoted to articles of interest, puzzles, poetry, parodies and pastiches. There are awards each year for literary merit in a wide range of categories.

On election into the Society, each member selects a pseudonym from the Canon (always excepting Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson) and are generally addressed at all meetings by that name.

The office of president, known as the Buttons-cum-Commissionaire is held for life by Dr. Douglas Sutherland-Bruce. The other committee members are elected or appointed annually.

Each year, in July, the Society celebrates Christmas in the traditional British fashion and in Victorian costume. The meeting at the end of November is a dinner/dance called "The Blue Carbuncle Soiree" where the business of the Society is conducted; membership certificates are presented as new members are inducted and the literary awards are made. Any successful students who may have achieved the Diploma of Holmesian Studies are also awarded their Diplomas.

Other meetings include an annual Croquet Day and other meetings may include viewings of Holmesian films, readings from the stories, debates, games nights, talks by various speakers such as private detectives or lawyers or forensic pathologists.

If you think you might be interested in joining please get in contact with:

The Wiggins,

Mrs. Sutherland-Bruce,

The Sherlock Holmes Society of Western Australia,

P.O. Box 284,

Tuart Hill,

WESTERN AUSTRALIA 6060