One of the common activities of Sherlock
Holmes gatherings is a series of toasts to individuals of Sherlockian fame,
either from what is generally called “real life” or from the pages of the Holmes
Canon. Over the weekend (March 25, 2017), I was surprised and honored to be asked
to toast the Master at the banquet of the Holmes, Doyle & Friends Four
conference in Dayton. Here’s what I (more or less) said:
“Holmes,
Doyle & Friends” is an indisputably appropriate name to gather under
tonight, for the Sherlockian community is all about friendship – the friendship
of Holmes and Watson, and our friendship for each other.
Sherlock
Holmes once asserted that he had no friends save Watson. Surely that is untrue,
however. Inspector G. Lestrade, who had a habit of looking in at 221B of an
evening, must be considered a friend. And so must Mrs. Hudson, Billy the page,
and brother Mycroft, each in his or her own unique way.
But
the greatest friends of the world’s first consulting detective are not to be
found in Baker Street. They span the globe . . . and the decades. They are located
in small villages and great metropolises, whether alone with their books or joined
with other like-minded eccentrics in almost a thousand societies devoted to the
master.
We, dear comrades,
are the friends of Sherlock Holmes.
And
so tonight we raise our glasses in a toast:
To him
whom we shall ever regard as the best and wisest man whom we have ever known –
Mr.
Sherlock Holmes of Baker Street!
Well done Dan. Wish I could have been there to join you in the toast.
ReplyDeleteI share the wish, Diane. Maybe next year!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks!
ReplyDelete