'But Holmes ... ' 'I wonder what kind of doctor he is. I
am sorry for his patients. I would not be surprised to
hear that he had cut off a man's leg because the
man had a stomach ache. He is clearly not
interested in facts.'
'Holmes,' I said as calmly as I could, 'a writer does not
just report facts. He must make sure that the story is
interesting to read. I am sure you understand that.'
Holmes smiled at me sweetly.
'My dear fellow,' he said. 'I forget. You know all about
fine writing. How stupid of me to worry about a few
careless mistakes! But your friend Mr Doyle has shown
that he does not understand how important my work
is. He thinks that the criminals I fight against are
stupid, miserable little beings. They are not. I fight
against evil itself. He has failed to understand that.
The book is worthless. Away with it, and with your
friend the writer!'
I wondered what to say to ACD, but there was no
need to worry. A Study in Scarlet was not a success,
and he began to write about other things. Several
years later he decided to write about Holmes again,
but at that time 1 had other things to think about. I
had fallen in love with Miss Mary Morstan. When she
agreed to become my wife, I hurried to tell Holmes. I
was full of happiness.
I can still hear the cold surprise in his voice as he said,
'I cannot pretend to be happy about this.'
This hurt me terribly, but I tried to laugh.
'Well, Holmes,' I said, 'I hope you won't be too lonely
when