The Valley of Fear (Sherlock Holmes #7)

by Arthur Conan Doyle

The Valley of Fear is the fourth and final Sherlock Holmes novel bySir Arthur Conan Doyle. It is loosely based on the Molly Maguires andPinkerton agent James McParland. The story was first published in theStrand Magazine between September 1914 and May 1915. The novel startswith Sherlock Holmes receiving a cipher message from Fred Porlock, apseudonymous agent of Professor Moriarty. After Porlock sends themessage, however, he changes his mind for fear of Moriarty's discoveringthat he is a traitor. He decides not to send the key to the cipher, but hesends Holmes a note telling of this decision. From the cipher message andthe second note, Holmes is able to deduce that it is a book-cipher and thatthe book used for the encryption is a common book, large (with at least534 pages), printed in two columns per page, and standardised. Analmanac fits these conditions exactly. Holmes tries the latest edition ofWhitaker's Almanac, which he had only received a few days earlier, and fails; he then tries the previous edition. With this almanac, Holmes is ableto decipher the message as a warning that "some devilry is intendedagainst one "Douglas", a country gentleman residing at Birlstone House.Some minutes later, Inspector Macdonald arrives at Baker Street withnews that a Mr. John Douglas of Birlstone Manor House, Birlstone,Sussex, has been murdered. Holmes tells MacDonald of Porlock's warning,suggesting Moriarty's involvement. However, MacDonald does not fullybelieve that the educated and well-respected Moriarty is a criminal.Holmes, Watson, and MacDonald travel to Birlstone House, an ancientmoated manor house, to investigate the crime.