stonepicnicking_okapi

Today's story is "The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual," which is a favorite of mine (and most Sherlock fans, I think). The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes calls it 'one of the most famous 'treasure-map' cases of all time. I should probably read (or watch? there must be films of it) TS Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral which borrows heavily from it.

So the funniest part of this is that it is a frame story (a story within a story) and it's Holmes trying to get out of tidying their rooms! I find that hilarious.

Watson: tidy up!
Holmes: storytime!

So Reginald Musgrave was at school together (imagine this in Bingo Little's voice: But Bertie we were at school together!) with Holmes and comes to him because he has a problem with a missing butler and Holmes decodes the family saying and figures out where the treasure is (a crown from the reign of Charles I). And it's good fun. Except for the butler who died a pretty horrible death and the girl (his accompalice) who is at least guilty of manslaughter but gets away (good for you!).

And many Sherlock scholars have tried to work on just what the Musgrave estate looked like (and the trees mentioned in the riddle/family saying)