The Hound of the Baskervilles

The Hound of the Baskervilles is a fictional novel that is part of the part of the Sherlock Holmes series, and was created by Holmes writer, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story features Sherlcok Holmes and Dr. Watson. Though it was released by after The Final Problem, in which Doyle chooses to kill off Holmes to end his series (Holmes dies in a fight with his archenemy Professor Moriarty when both fall over a cliff), Doyle decided to create this story due to the large popularity over the series. The book was released in 1901-1902 in the Strand magazine. The story, though the main chracter is Holmes, is through the perspective of Dr. Watson, and we can see Holmes' observatory mind through another's eyes.


Basiclly the story takes places in Dartmoor, Devon (country land in England). In this story, Dr. James Mortimer, come to Dr. Watson and Holmes before their meeting with Henry Baskerville and warns them of the legends of 'The Hound of the Baskervilles,' in which a demonic dog is said to murder all decendents of Baskervilles, and it all began with Hugo Baskerville several hundred years ago. When Sherlock dismays this as stupid and illogical and myths are not real, Mortimer recounts the death of Henry Baskerville's (current resident of the Baskerville Estate) uncle, Charles Bakerville. His body was found, though not physcially wounded, he was dead, and the only abnormality is his distroted face which almost leads people to believe he died of terror. Also on the gorund next to Charles Baskerville was the imprint of a large dog. Long story short, it is a local naturalist (and later revealed the Henry Baskerville's long lost cousin) Stapleton. His idea was to send a half-starved mutt that he bought from Ross and Magles, to attack the Baskervilles. To make the mutt seem more diabolical, he soaked it in phosphorus-ointment (which, combined with oxygen will emit a glowing light, or make thing appear more luminous). However, Holmes, like always, puts the pieces of the puzzle together, and Watson, Lestrade, and himself all wait for the houng to come to Henry in which they shoot and kill the dog. Stapleton escape, thoguh in his escape, he is lost in the fog, and we can safely assume he drowned.



In this Holmes' tale, like all Holmes tales, Sherlock Holmes uses observations and logic to put the pieces of the crime together. This story also includes many red herrings, but Holmes, as he point out to Watson, as the world is full of details, and most people simply do not notice them.