Question

What were Watson's observations on the stick left behind by Dr. Mortimer? How far did Sherlock Holmes prove him wrong? (in about 125 words)

Answer 1

Watson likens the stick left behind by Dr. Mortimer to what ‘the old-fashioned family practitioner used to carry’. He observes the worn out condition of the stick and concludes that the man must be a ‘successful, elderly medical man’ who practises in the countryside and travels a lot on foot. The silver band also displays the words ‘from his friends of the C.C.H.’ and the year ‘1884’. Watson infers that the stick must have been a presentation from a local hunt.
 

Holmes, however, after examining the stick himself, declares most of his friend’s conclusion to be ‘erroneous’. He points out that the stick must have been presented to the doctor by a hospital and C.C.H. would then mean ‘Charing Cross Hospital’. He further reasons that Dr Mortimer must have practised in town before shifting his practice to the country five years back; that he is a young man under thirty; that he is ‘amiable’, ‘unambitious’ and ‘absent-minded’; and that he possesses a dog, whose teeth marks are visible on the stick.