Holmes and Watson End Peace: A Novel of Sherlock Holmes by David Ruffle

amateur still have his day?”
    â€œThey will neither be required nor consulted, Watson. He is more likely I fear to be arrested for obstruction than listened to or heeded.”
    â€œâ€™The Whole Art of Detection’ could have been an important document, an account of your life with the emphasis where it should be; with your deductive skills to the fore instead of the sensationalist element I sometimes let slip into the stories of your doings.”
    â€œSometimes? I am not convinced anyone would want to read such a dry document, all in all, the general populace seem happy to know me through your chronicles and do you know, I am more than happy with that.”
    â€œI am surprised to hear you say it, Holmes. Could it be you have mellowed?”
    â€œQuite possibly, my friend, quite possibly.”
    â€œAt least you entered the published world through your monographs.”
    â€œAh yes, my monographs. Dry as dust and no doubt just as un-readable. I don’t believe I ever encountered anyone who had ever read the blessed things excepting your good self of course. You did read them, did you not?”
    â€œWell, I certainly looked through them, I would hesitate to call it reading, but I believe I caught the gist of all the salient points you made.”
    â€œYou never seemed to have any trouble reading your sea-faring tales ad infinitum.”
    â€œThey were full-blooded and exciting, Holmes, whereas your monographs were-”
    â€œYes, Watson?”
    â€œ-as dry as dust.”
    â€œTouché, Watson, or perhaps I should say more rightly; Et tu Watson! And all this from a discussion of your perceived limitations as a writer!”
    â€œEvery man has his limitations in all walks of life, perhaps they serve to cure us of the weakness of self-satisfaction.”
    â€œI can see no harm in self-satisfaction, indeed I see more harm in not being satisfied enough. We should all strive to attain the utmost reward for our talents.”
    â€œBut that in no way negates self-satisfaction being an ill. It surely is the self-satisfied man who will never strive and reach out for further achievement.”
    â€œAh, but if he reaches the pinnacle of those achievements, then he can be well and truly self-satisfied.”
    â€œIt’s a question of degrees then?”
    â€œPrecisely so. You say your limitations as a writer served to cure you of the weakness of self-satisfaction?”
    â€œWhy, yes.”
    â€œIn other words, then, you were not satisfied and wanted to extend your literary skills?”
    â€œNo, I was happy not to seek to extend myself in that direction.”
    â€œFrom your own mouth then, you proclaim yourself to be self-satisfied and your limitations did nothing to cure you of it. A point for me, Watson?”
    â€œYes, Holmes, I believe you are taking advantage of my weary state.”
    â€œFar from it, I never did get your limits and exploring them now is of the greatest interest to me. A case in point is your account of the Enoch Drebber murder in the case you called ‘A Study in Scarlet’. They were described on the frontispiece as being a reprint from your reminiscences, but nothing else ever followed concerning your life. Why not?”
    â€œIt’s simple, Holmes. I found your life to be a far more interesting one than my own. The readers wanted to know about you, not me.”
    â€œPerhaps they may have been eager for tales of your experience of women, which extended over many nations and three separate continents, unless your prowess in those matters was somewhat overstated.”
    â€œMy natural discretion would naturally not allow me to compile such an account.”
    â€œGood old Watson!”
    â€œAs you were so fond of saying, the fair sex was my department.”
    â€œYour natural charm carried all before you; I was constantly bewildered by the ease with which you relaxed in women’s company. I do not mean that unkindly, you