The Adventure of the Speckled Band
Scruple
A doubt or hesitation that affects one's judgment.
Dogcart
A light horse-drawn vehicle
Vagabonds
A person without a permanent home who moves from place to place.
Fortnight
A time period of two weeks.
Parapet
A wall or barrier
Give details about exactly what happens after Holmes and Watson hear the whistle.
After Holmes and Watson heat the whistle Holmes clutches his cane and Watson grabs his gun. Holmes then starts swinging his cane because he notices something coming out of the vent.
Pretense
An attempt to make something that is not the case appear true.
What does Holmes learn from trying to break into the room after Miss Stoner fastens the shutters?
Holmes learns that there is easy access into Helen's room from the outside.
What did Holmes notice is odd about the bed?
Holmes notices that the bed in Julia's room is fastened to the floor below a vent. This is odd because Julia could not move her bed if she wanted to.
Setting
London, England April 1883
Themes
Negative actions have negative consequences. One should use intelligence for the benefit of others, not for evil. One should be observant to be successful. Good will override evil.
Pray
Please
Author
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Morose
Sulky, gloomy, depressed
Title
The Adventure of the Speckled Band
Bequeathed
To leave an item/sum of money to another person.
Earlier in the story Holmes warned Miss Stoner that if Dr. Roylott suspected he was nearby, his journey would be in vain. What did he mean by that? How do you think the doctor might have altered his plan if he had known Holmes was nearby?
When Holes told Miss Stoner that, he meant if the doctor found out then he would have changed his plans completely. The doctor might have altered his plans by switching the way he would plan to kill Helen.
Imperturbably
Cool, calm, and composed
Narrator
Doctor Watson
Describe Dr. Roylott's behavior also. What does he do to try to frighten Holmes? What does he want Holmes to do?
Dr. Roylott bends the poker then hauls it into the fireplace. He wants Holmes to drop the idea of the mysterious fate of Julia Stoner.
Holmes obtains a copy of Helen Stoner's mother's will, and it provides a motive for Dr. Roylott's not wishing his stepdaughter to ever marry. Explain.
Dr. Roylott does not want the sisters to marry so that he can keep the inheritance. He uses a snake to kill Julia and try and kill Helen.
Describe Dr. Roylott as he appears in Holmes' room.
Dr. Roylott is angry, tall, and broad and instantly begins to show the anger problems that Helen described.
Characters
Dr. Watson, Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Grimseby Roylott, Helen Stoner.
Save
Except
Gypsies
Group(s) of traveling people who have no permanent home. They move from place to place and make money by selling goods or moving among small, temporary jobs.
Red Herrings
Gypsies, animals, the bandannas, and the bell rope.
Plot
Helen Stoner goes to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson because she tells them about her father. While explaining the story, she said that her sister who was about the get married died in her room, and then Dr. Roylott told Helen Stoner to move into her sisters room. Next, the detectives devise a plan to figure out the truth behind Julia's death and later on discovers that Dr. Roylott used a snake to kill Julia and to try and kill Helen.
Describe what Helen Stoner hears just before her sister dies. What are her sister's last words to her?
Helen Stoner hears the whistle that Julia described. Julia's last words were "Oh Helen! It was the band! The speckled band!"
Describe what Helen Stoner told Holmes about her stepfather. Why did he go to India? What forced him to leave?
Helen Stoner told Holmes that her stepfather was the last survivor of the old Saxon families in England. She told him about his trip to India and his marriage to her mother. Dr. Roylott went to India because of his imprisonment. He had to leave India because he had to take care of Helen and Julia Stoner.
Describe the woman who has come to consult Holmes and Watson early one morning. How is she dressed? What makes Holmes think he should offer her coffee? What is odd about her hair?
Helen Stoner was the woman who came to consult Holmes and Watson. She is dressed in black and heavily veiled. Holmes thought that he should offer her coffee because he observed her shivering. The odd thing about Helen's hair is that she is growing premature gray hair however, she is only about thirty years old.
What happened to Helen Stoner's mother and how did her stepfather change after her mother's death?
Helen Stoner's mother died eight years previous in a railway accident near Crewe. Her stepfather changed after her mother's death from being rude to letting the children live with him.
Why does Helen move into Julia's room? What frightens her when she does?
Helen moves into Julia's room because Dr. Roylott said that her room was being fixed. Helen was frightened to move in because it is the same room where her sister met her fate.
The bell-rope Holmes notices in the bedroom would have been used to summon a servant to the room. What things seem odd about the rope?
Holmes figures out that the bell rope is a dummy or decoy. When it is shaken, it is supposed to ring; however, it did not.
Coroner
It is a government official who confirms and certifies the death of an individual.
Describe what they find when they enter Dr. Roylott's room after the dreadful shriek.What is the speckled band? How did the doctor die?
Once they enter the room, they find a yellow and black snake around Dr. Roylott's forehead. He is in his bed with his eyes wide open. The speckled band is the snake. The doctor died from a snake bite. The speckled band bit the doctor so the venom spread.
Holmes and Watson see Dr. Roylott return home from their window at the Crown Inn. What do they witness that is another example of his terrible temper?
They witness Dr. Roylott yelling at a young boy who has to open the house gate for him. This shows his terrible temper.
Meddle
To interfere or snoop in on information that does not concern you.
Defray
To pay for an expense
Pauper
Very poor person