Canon Discussion: The Hound of the Baskervilles, Chaps. 8-15

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

This week we’re looking at the second half of The Hound of the Baskervilles, chapters 8-15. I’ve typed up a few thoughts to get the discussion going.

Chap. 8

One page is missing, but otherwise they are exactly as written… That’s an intriguing reference to Watson’s letters. When you read what he’s given us, there’s nothing obviously missing. Is the missing page lost or deliberately withheld?


Chap. 10

…when Mortimer pressed his questions to an inconvenient extent I asked him casually to what type Frankland’s skull belonged, and so heard nothing but craniology for the rest of our drive. I have not lived for years with Sherlock Holmes for nothing. That last line makes me smile. Is Watson aware of the (possible) double meaning? That is, he’s learnt from Holmes how to manipulate people, and because he’s known him some years, he’s also learnt how to manipulate Holmes.

Chap. 12

“…I have been able to get about as I could not possibly have done had I been living at the Hall, and I remain an unknown factor in the business, ready to throw in all my weight at a critical moment.” Did Holmes really gain that much advantage from not making himself known? Watson coming to Dartmoor immediately alerted Stapleton to Holmes’ interest in the case.

Chap. 13

“But this is marvellous. It might be his portrait.” It’s certainly handy that Stapleton is the spitting image of his dastardly, and very distant, ancestor, yet doesn’t look like his first cousin Sir Henry at all…

“Send back your trap, however, and let them know that you intend to walk home.” Stapleton has the hound ready at Merripit House. How could he be sure Sir Henry would decide to walk home?

Chap. 14

ONE of Sherlock Holmes’s defects—if, indeed, one may call it a defect—was that he was exceedingly loth to communicate his full plans to any other person until the instant of their fulfilment. “You’re mighty close about this affair, Mr. Holmes. What’s the game now?” Lestrade gave a yell of terror and threw himself face downwards upon the ground. Does poor Lestrade have any idea what’s going on? How much has Holmes told him? Both Holmes and Watson know there is a (natural) hound but does Lestrade have any idea there is a hound involved, supernatural or otherwise?

Chap. 15

…he had been engaged in two affairs of the utmost importance, in the first of which he had exposed the atrocious conduct of Colonel Upwood in connection with the famous card scandal of the Nonpareil Club, while in the second he had defended the unfortunate Mme. Montpensier from the charge of murder which hung over her in connection with the death of her step-daughter… Watson gives us another couple of unwritten cases to ponder. I do especially wonder about the latter. Was the lady framed by her unmurdered step-daughter? (And why?)

“He married Beryl Garçia, one of the beauties of Costa Rica, and, having purloined a considerable sum of public money, he changed his name to Vandeleur and fled to England…” Why did Beryl marry Stapleton? Beautiful women don’t marry purely for love—they marry someone who is powerful, successful and rich. And despite his ruthlessness, Stapleton seems rather pathetic, having to steal and murder to get money.

“His love for the lady was deep and sincere, and to him the saddest part of all this black business was that he should have been deceived by her.” (Chap. 15) …he appeared to be strongly attracted by her, and I am much mistaken if the feeling was not mutual. (Chap. 8) Did Beryl love Sir Henry? Or was her concern for him just fellow feeling? She did seem to be still in love with her husband—or at least hoped that her husband loved her. She turned against Stapleton once she knew that he’d been involved with another woman.

I wonder what happens to Beryl. Does she go to prison? Does she return to Costa Rica? Or the worst possible fate—does she have to become a typist like Mrs Lyons?

”If its appearance did not frighten its victim to death, at least it would paralyze the resistance which might be offered.” That’s a thought. If Sir Henry is attacked and killed by the hound (unlike Sir Charles and Selden who died because of the hound but weren’t actually set upon), the police aren’t going to believe in the legend and are going to investigate. Would Stapleton’s purchase from the dealers (though I presume he would have been in disguise) come to light? Could he have ever really hoped to have got away with it?

Next Sunday, 18th May, we’ll be back to the short stories and having a look at The Adventure of Wisteria Lodge. Hope to see you then!

(PS In the schedule I previously had SIGN following on directly after STUD. But after doing the discussion posts for HOUN, the thought of doing two novels one after the other is making me sob quietly ^^” And I assume I wouldn’t be terribly popular if I made everyone else read two novels on the trot as well. So, I’ve moved up REDH and put it between STUD and SIGN. Please let me know if you’d prefer me to put an even bigger gap between the two of them.)

Comments

[thesmallhobbit.livejournal.com]

Regarding the resemblance of Stapleton to his distant ancestor, but not to his cousin - apart from the obvious plot point - it is possible. My son bears a strong resemblance to my grandfather and yet my daughter looks very like my husband's grandmother.

I think Holmes absence from the Hall did help - Stapleton would of course be aware of his interest in the case and therefore suspicious, but his attention would be directed towards the Hall, thus allowing Holmes to watch unobserved.

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

It's one of those things - you accept in real life that blood relatives don't always resemble one another, and that features from a few generations ago will suddenly pop up again. But in fiction it's a bit unsatisfying. But of course Watson's stories aren't fiction. So that's all right. (^^")

I'm not entirely convinced. Holmes is always popping on a disguise so he can watch people in secret. And not being officially in Dartmoor meant he couldn't interview people - Laura Lyons, for instance.

[laurose8.livejournal.com]

Thanks for pointing out that missing page. There's room for a lot of speculation there. Also about the police investigating a real dog. It's just possible - someone will probably have a better idea - that Stapleton meant to wash off the sfx and have his hound discovered as a stray dog.

Another good point about Beryl. Perhaps she did marry for love, against all the opposition of her family and friends? And/or perhaps he was putting up a front, and because her family was poor, or otherwise, she couldn't expect a good match.

Poor Lestrade! Another thing I didn't notice.

A couple of very obvious points...

I'm not an ethologist, but I gather Jack London was rather putting it on; and dogs don't kill each other for food. I think Stapleton killed the spaniel because he didn't want Mortimer's dog following his trail. A quick blow, and the spaniel would be dead before he knew what was happening. Since he could, and feeding the hound was probably always more expense and trouble than he bargained for, he gave the body to the Hound later.

Also, I do find Watson's description of Laura Lyons remarkable. He's sometimes dismmissive of woman servants, but I think this is the only time his description of a lady is so condemnatory. (With Mary Marston, I think he was trying to say she had more going for her than a pretty face.)

[scfrankles.livejournal.com]

I think even if you have the hound as a wild, stray dog (and I assume after Sir Henry was dead, Stapleton would have killed the hound and destroyed its body) the police are going to start making investigations as to where it's come from. It's always possible that the dog dealers would volunteer the information that they'd sold an enormous dog that could perhaps inflict those sort of injuries. But I suppose it is a bit of a long shot - the hound was sold in London and taken to Dartmoor.

That's a good point - if Beryl Garcia was from a poor family, Rodger Baskerville might have been her best prospect. He might have told her his family had property in England - without explaining he wasn't directly in line for inheriting.

I was puzzled about that bit - the skeleton of the spaniel being found in the hound's lair. I could understand the hound killing the dog but not eating it. And the hound would probably have been chained up when the spaniel went missing. The spaniel would have caught the scent of the bigger dog and would have been unlikely to go near enough to be attacked. Your explanation of Stapleton killing the spaniel does make a lot of sense.

Watson is quite critical about Laura Lyons' features, isn't he? or rather, her character as reflected in her features. We don't get that reaction to Beryl Stapleton, who is far more guilty in this story.