Holmes details several "obvious facts," noticing that Watson has been personally unable to deduce anything from his own perusal of Mr. Wilson. He says that Mr. Wilson
1. Has done manual labor at some time in his life; 2. Is a taker of snuff; 3. Is a Freemason; 4. Has been in China at some time; and 5. Has done "a considerable amount of writing" at some time in the recent past.
Watson, as usual, is astounded by these deductions, but Holmes explains that they are fairly obvious to somebody who pays close attention. Because Mr. Wilson's right hand is larger and more developed than his left, this indicates that he has been a manual laborer. Holmes doesn't actually explain how he can tell that Mr. Wilson takes snuff, but he does say that he wears an "arc-and-compass breastpin," which is a symbol of Freemasonry. Meanwhile, his right cuff is "shiny" and his left sleeve has a bare patch by the elbow, which Holmes deduces is from the position Mr. Wilson takes when writing at his desk. Meanwhile, there is a tattoo of a fish above the man's right wrist, which Holmes deduces must have been done in China because of the way its scales have been dyed pink; similarly, there is a Chinese coin hanging from Wilson's watch chain.
When he explains himself to Mr. Wilson, Wilson laughs, amazed at how apparently simple it all is, which prompts Holmes to observe that perhaps he should keep his reasoning to himself in order to preserve an air of mystery.
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Holmes lists the "obvious acts" that he deduces from Mr Wilson's appearance. What are they, and how did Holmes make the deductions?
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