Books in the Dispatch-Box series

The first of these, "The Case of the Russian Bear", involves the British Government, as represented by Mycroft Holmes. The circumstances surrounding it are mentioned in "The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax", where Holmes mentions to Watson that it would be impossible for him to leave London while "old Abrahams" is in such danger. We are not told any more about Abrahams in the Canon, but he may be identified as Sir David Abrahams, who makes his appearance in "The Enfield Rope". In it, we see Holmes' varied interests, including Kaballah, and some knowledge of the anarchist and revolutionary movements in Russia at the end of the 19th century (the last no doubt at least as the result of his work for Mycroft). There can be little doubt in my mind that Watson witheld publication of this adventure on account of its political sensitivity. The second adventure recorded here, "The Hand of Glory", is a purely domestic adventure, taking place as it does in a small unnamed Warwickshire market town, which it is impossible to identify from the sketchy description here. Holmes' knowledge of the esoteric superstitions of the past stands him in good stead here, and leads him to a satisfactory elimination of a criminal conspiracy, set up and masterminded for reasons of personal revenge. The grisly elements in this story are beyond anything described elsewhere by Watson, surpassing even "The Cardboard Box" and "Black Peter" in their gruesome nature. It seems to me that this would form a reason for this adventure to remain unpublished by Watson. Lastly, we turn to the "Disappearing Spoon"¿; a light-hearted look at a very minor incident in which Holmes renders assistance to a former schoolfellow. Disappointingly, though, we are not informed which school he attended (my personal belief is that Holmes was educated at Stonyhurst College, but there is no way of verifying or disproving this from the material available here).

Another discovery from the vaults of Cox and Co., the old London bank which had forwarded the Deed Box of John H Watson to the author last year. The Dispatch Box contains all manner of illuminating documents about Messrs. Holmes and Watson.Of particular interest are what the author refers to as The Affair of the Vatican Cameos, the Reigate Poisoning Case, with a shocking conclusion, and a document apparently written by the man Holmes himself called 'the fourth smartest man in London', John Clay.

A Papal legate, on a secret mission to England from Rome, is discovered dead. How did he die? And why? Mycroft Holmes, master of many of the secrets of the realm, calls in his younger brother Sherlock to discover the answer to these questions.When he arrives at the scene of the crime, Sherlock Holmes discovers that the Cardinal's corpse has been moved - inside a locked room. A search for a missing document which may prove to be the clue to this riddle - but Holmes and Watson find themselves caught in a tangled web of mystery and political intrigue as they investigate The Death of Cardinal Tosca.

The second box ("the dispatch-box") to be discovered in the vaults of Cox & Co. of Charing Cross has been the source of even more discoveries concerning the celebrated detective Sherlock Holmes. Included in this volume are four tales, all referenced in the canonical originally published adventures:The Abernetty Horror: A bloody crime in a Welsh fishing village points to one seemingly obvious answer. Holmes brings his reasoning powers to bear on the parsley and butter to discover the true solution (mentioned in The Six Napoleons).The Finsbury House: "the shocking affair of the Dutch steamship Friesland, that so nearly cost us both our lives" (The Norwood Builder).The Curious Affair of the Archdeacon: Mentioned in passing at the beginning of the Red Circle, this case is more light-hearted than many of Holmes' adventures.An Account of the Victor Lynch Forgery: An account of an early case of Sherlock Holmes, related not by Watson, but by Inspector Lestrade, in the form of a letter to the good doctor, following the events at Meiringen. Mentioned in both Study in Scarlet and the Sussex Vampire.This collection includes a Foreword from consulting Sherlockian Dr. Philip. C. Eyster, who writes, "I had only read a few pages of his initial story, when I knew that Mr. Ashton has not only the skill but also the deep-felt desire to faithfully add to the canon the same Sherlock as came from the pen of Arthur Conan Doyle over 100 years ago".