TH6: Every Link Rings True 3rd Warm Up Game Results and Answers

Hello Watsonians,

The 3rd TH6 warm-up game proved to be quite challenging.  Two of our intrepid quiz masters managed to correctly answer all five questions after a few strategy discussions. Congratulations to Sheila ‘Daisy’ Holtgrieve and Ron ‘Chips’ Lies for a job well done.

I want to thank all of you who took the time to participate in the three warm up games.  Each game helped me to better understand which puzzle types work best; my goal is to write a hunt that is challenging and fun. If time permits, we might have one more warm up game closer to the August hunt.

As always, I appreciate your participation and enthusiasm.

Margie/ JHWS ‘Mopsy’

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

  1. According to Holmes, these prevent the world from being dull. What?

Answer: lunatics

‘I was wondering whether he could have buried something. Of course, when people bury treasure nowadays they do it in the Post Office bank. But there are always some lunatics about. It would be a dull world without them.’ (3GAB)

2.Probably a (answer to number one) broke it to atoms. What?

Answer: bust of Napoleon

‘’In Kennington Road, and within a few hundred yards of Morse Hudson’s shop, there lives a well-known medical practitioner, named Dr Barnicot,..Some little time ago he purchased from Morse Hudson two duplicate plaster casts of the famous head of Napoleon by the French sculptor Devine. One of these he placed in his hall in the house at Kennington Road, and the other on the mantelpiece of the surgery at Lower Brixton.…Dr Barnicot was due at his surgery at twelve o’clock, and you can imagine his amazement when, on arriving there, he found that the window had been opened in the night, and that the broken pieces of his second bust were strewn all over the room.  It had been smashed to atoms where it stood.  In neither case were there any signs which could give us a clue as to the criminal or lunatic who had done the mischief.’ (SIXN)

  1. With the (answer to number two) in mind, count the pieces in the container. How many?

Answer: two thousand

‘We had occasion some months ago to strengthen our resources, and borrowed, for that purpose, thirty thousand Napoleons from the Bank of France.  It has become known that we have never had occasion to unpack the money, and that it is still lying in our cellar.  The crate upon which I sit contains two thousand Napoleons packed between layers of lead foil. Our reserve of bullion is much larger at present than is usually kept in a single branch office, and the directors have had misgivings upon the subject.’ (REDH)

  1. Value (the answer to number three) times a hundred to determine who proposed a bribe which Holmes found amusing. Who?

Answer:  Killer Evans

‘Yes, sir,’ said our prisoner, staggering slowly to his feet and then sinking into the chair.  ‘The greatest counterfeiter London ever saw. That’s Prescott’s machine, and those bundles on the table are two thousand of Prescott’s notes worth a hundred each and fit to pass anywhere. Help yourselves, gentlemen. Call it a deal and let me beat it. ‘Holmes laughed. ‘We don’t do things like that, Mr Evans.’…So those are the facts about Killer Evans and his remarkable invention of the three Garridebs. (3GAR)

  1. Someone with the same surname as (answer to number four) and someone else sailed together on at least two different vessels. The life of the someone else was defined by two sets of initials. Who? What initials?

Answer: Old Trevor, J.P., J.A.

‘Old Trevor was evidently a man of some wealth and consideration, a J.P. and a landed proprietor… ‘”And you have been most intimately associated with someone whose initials were J.A., and whom you afterwards were eager to entirely forget.’

‘My name, dear lad, is not Trevor. I was James Armitage in my younger days, and you can understand now the shock that it was to me a few weeks ago when your college friend addressed me in words which seemed to imply that he had surmised my secret…’

‘I did so, and found my other neighbour to be a young fellow in much the same position as myself, whose crime had been forgery. His name was Evans but he afterwards changed it, like myself, and he is now a rich and prosperous man in the South of England.’

‘Next day we were picked up by the brig Hotspur, bound for Australia, whose captain found no difficulty in believing that we were the survivors of a passenger ship which had foundered.  The transport ship, Gloria Scott, was set down by the Admiralty as being lost at sea, and no word has ever leaked out as to her true fate. After an excellent voyage the Hotspur landed us at Sydney, where Evans and I changed our names and made our way to the diggings, where among the crowds who were gathered from all nations, we had no difficulty in losing our former identities.  (GLOR)

Helpful Hint— Sherlock Holmes said, “Education never ends, Watson.”  See where it leads the party.

‘Our boat lay, rising and falling, upon the long, smooth rollers, and Evans and I, who were the most educated of the party, were sitting in the sheets working out our position and planning what coast we should make for…’ (GLOR)

Clarification for TH6: Every Link Rings True 3rd Warm Up Game

Hi Watsonians–

I have heard the 3rd TH6 Warm-Up Game may be a bit too….ambiguous. To help correct the situation, I have added four words to the game.  These four words should make solving the thing much easier.

Since a change is being made, the deadline to submit answers is changed as well.  Please send your answers to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com no later than April 15.

Your obedient servant,

Margie/ ‘Mopsy’

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

1. According to Holmes, these prevent the world from being dull. What?

2. Probably a (answer to number one) broke it to atoms. What?

3. With the (answer to number two) in mind, count the pieces in the container. How many?

4. Value (the answer to number three) times a hundred to determine who proposed a bribe which Holmes found amusing.  Who?

5. A person with the same surname as (answer to number four) and ‘someone else’ sailed together on at least two different vessels.  The life of the’ someone else’ was defined by two sets of initials.  Who is ‘someone else’?  What initials?

Helpful Hint— Sherlock Holmes said, “Education never ends, Watson.”  See where it leads the party.

TH6: Every Link Rings True 3rd Warm Up Game

Hello Watsonians!

Last month, we had some fun with a practice game in anticipation of the annual Treasure Hunt.  Participation was good, and I received some nice comments.  Want to try another one?

You will find below five questions for the 3rd practice  round for TH6:Every Link Rings True .  Please do not post any answers here; send answers to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.  Answers are due no later than April 11th.

Good luck!

Margie/JHWS ‘Mopsy’

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

1. According to Holmes, these prevent the world from being dull. What?

2. Probably a (answer to number one) broke it. What?

3. With the (answer to number two) in mind, count the pieces in the container. How many?

4. Value (the answer to number three) times a hundred to determine who proposed a bribe which Holmes found amusing.  Who?

5. A person with the same surname as (answer to number four) and ‘someone else’ sailed together on at least two different vessels.  The life of the’ someone else’ was defined by two sets of initials.  Who is ‘someone else’?  What initials?

Helpful Hint— Sherlock Holmes said, “Education never ends, Watson.”  See where it leads.

TH6: Every Link Rings True 2nd Warm Up Game Answers

Hi All–

‘Roxie’ (Sandy Kozinn) kindly reminded me that I failed to post the answers to the game when I posted the results last week.  Sorry about that.  Please see below.

Thank for the interest!

Margie/ JHWS ‘Mopsy’

1. According to Watson, Holmes never stood here. Where?

Answer: the dock

Such extenuating circumstances came out in the trial that the sentence, as will be remembered, was the lowest that was possible for such an offence. Sherlock Holmes was threatened with a prosecution for burglary, but when an object is good and a client is sufficiently illustrious, even the rigid British law becomes human and elastic. My friend has not yet stood in the dock. (ILLU)

2. Find the slip of a girl who prevented her friend from standing where Holmes never stood. Who?

Answer: Miss Morrison

It was not easy to pick one’s steps, but on the whole I was inclined to dismiss the idea that there had been anything between the Colonel and Miss Morrison, but more than ever convinced that the young lady held the clue as to what it was which had turned Mrs Barclay to hatred of her husband.  I took the obvious course, therefore, of calling upon Miss Morrison, of explaining to her that I was perfectly certain that she held the facts in her possession, and of assuring her that her friend, Mrs Barclay, might find herself in the dock upon a capital charge unless the matter were cleared up. Miss Morrison is a little, ethereal slip of a girl, with timid eyes and blonde hair, but I found her by no means wanting in shrewdness and common sense. She sat thinking for some time after I had spoken, and then turning to me with a brisk air of resolution, she broke into a remarkable statement, which I will condense for your benefit. (CROO)

3. A lady with an identical surname to [the answer to question two] was mentioned only once as part of a well-baited trap. Who?

Answer: Annie Morrison

‘It is very much the sort of thing that I expected,’ said he. ‘Of course, we do not yet know what the relations may have been between Alec Cunningham, William Kirwan, and Annie Morrison. The result shows that the trap was skillfully baited. (REIG)

Tracey, Encyclopedia Sherlockiana, p. 248: Morrison, Annie, a woman mentioned in the note from the Cunninghams to William Kirwin, though her role in the case is uncertain.

4. A lady with the same first name as [the answer to question three] had a brother who did not think Holmes was very clever after all. Which brother?

Answer: Joseph Harrison

‘Of course you saw the “J. H.” monogram on my locket,’ said he.  ‘For a moment I thought you had done something clever.  Joseph Harrison is my name, and as Percy is to marry my sister Annie, I shall at least be a relation by marriage.  You will find my sister in his room, for she has nursed him hand-and-foot these two months back.  Perhaps we had better go in at once, for I know how impatient he is.’ (NAVA)

5. With the first name of [the answer to question four] in mind, look in the pocket and find the poet. Who?

Answer: Giovanni Boccaccio

‘’You’re sure it doesn’t simplify them?’ observed Holmes.  ‘There’s nothing to be learned by staring at it. What did you find in his pockets?’ ‘We have it all here,’ said Gregson, pointing to a litter of objects upon one of the bottom steps of the stairs ‘A gold watch, No. 97163, by Barraud, of London. ..No purse, but loose money to the extent of seven pounds thirteen. Pocket edition of Boccaccio’s Decameron, with name of Joseph Stangerson upon the fly-leaf. Two letters – one addressed to E. J. Drebber and one to Joseph Stangerson.’ (STUD)

Wikipedia: Giovanni Boccaccio (/boʊˈkɑːtʃioʊ, bə-, -tʃoʊ/; Italian: [dʒoˈvanni bokˈkattʃo]; 16 June 1313 – 21 December 1375)[1] was an Italian writer, poet, correspondent of Petrarch, and an important Renaissance humanist. Boccaccio wrote a number of notable works, including The Decameron and On Famous Women. He wrote his imaginative literature mostly in the Italian vernacular, as well as other works in Latin, and is particularly noted for his realistic dialogue which differed from that of his contemporaries, medieval writers who usually followed formulaic models for character and plot.

Helpful hint: Do not look in Holmes’s pocket

‘No, sir, I shall approach this case from the point of view that what this young man says is true, and we shall see whither that hypothesis will lead us. And now here is my pocket Petrarch, and not another word shall I say of this case until we are on the scene of action. We lunch at Swindon, and I see that we shall be there in twenty minutes.’ (BOSC)

 

 

TH6: Every Link Rings True 2nd Warm Up Game Results

Hello Watsonians,

The time has passed to submit answers for our second TH6:Every Link Rings True warm-up game.  Responses to this game came quickly, with our ‘Calder’ /Brad Keefauver sending the answers almost before I posted the questions.  He was fast and 100% accurate.

Several others quickly followed with correct answers as well: Roger Johnson/ ‘Count’, Richard Olken/ ‘Palmer’, Denny Dobry, Paul Harnett/ ‘Scout’, Sheila Holtgrieve/ ‘Daisy’, Beth Gallego/ ‘Selena’, Ron Lies/ ‘Chips’, and Michele Lopez/ ‘Reggie’

Congratulations to all of you for a game well-played!  You are all in fine form for the 2018 Treasure Hunt.  I will be back soon with another small warm-up challenge.

Many thanks for playing!

Margie/ JHWS ‘Mopsy’

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

TH6: Every Link Rings True 2nd Warm Up Game

Hello Watsonians!

Last month, we had a little fun with an introductory practice game in anticipation of the annual Treasure Hunt.  This month we continue the practice for TH6:Every Link Rings True with a second warm up game.

You will find the five questions for the practice posted below.  Please do not post any answers here; send answers to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.  Answers are due no later than March 11th.

Won’t you play along?

Margie/JHWS ‘Mopsy’

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

1. According to Watson, Holmes never stood here.  Where?

2. Find the slip of a girl who prevented her friend from standing where Holmes never stood.  Who?

3. A lady with an identical surname to [the answer to question two] was mentioned only once as part of a well-baited trap.  Who?

4. A lady with the same first name as [the answer to question three] had a brother who did not think Holmes was very clever after all.  Which brother?

5. With the first name of [the answer to question four] in mind, look in the pocket and find the poet. Which poet?

Helpful hint: Do not look in Holmes’s pocket.

TH6: A Little Game Results & Answers

Hi Watsonians–

The first warm up game for TH6:EveryLinkRingsTrue is over and the results are in.  The first Watsonian to correctly answer all five questions is none other than our amazing leader ‘Selena Buttons’ (Beth Gallego).   Several other Watsonians gave it a go and most succeeded in answering all questions correctly.

Congratulations to Beth and all our participants: Ron Lies/ ‘Chips’, Richard Olken/ ‘Palmer’,  Paul Hartnett/ ‘Scout’, Sheila Holtgrieve/ ‘Daisy’, and Michele Lopez/ ‘Reggie’.

We will have a few more short games to practice this quiz style prior to the start of the Treasure Hunt.  The answers are posted below.

Many thanks to all of you that played the game!

Margie/ JHWS ‘Mopsy’

  1. In ten minutes or less, accept a child. With the child in mind, choose 4 brief letters

Answer:  YELL

‘It was a long two minutes before Grant Munro broke the silence, and when his answer came it was one of which I love to think. He lifted the little child, kissed her, and then, still carrying her, he held his other hand out to his wife, and turned towards the door.’ (YELL)

‘The Yellow Face’ = YELL

In some editions, two minutes is changed to ten minutes.  See Klinger Annotated, VOL 1, p. 472, note 25.

  1. Turn your four letters into a verb, send it across the moor, and confirm who it is not. Who

Answer: Sir Henry Baskerville

‘A terrible scream – a prolonged yell of horror and anguish burst out of the silence of the moor.  That frightful cry turned the blood to ice in my veins. ‘Oh, my God!’ I gasped. ‘What is it? What does it mean?’…Blindly we ran through the gloom, blundering against boulders, forcing our way through gorse bushes, panting up hills and rushing down slopes, heading always in the direction whence those dreadful sounds had come. At every rise Holmes looked eagerly round him, but the shadows were thick upon the moor and nothing moved upon its dreary face. And it shone upon something else which turned our hearts sick and faint within us – the body of Sir Henry Baskerville!….Good heavens, are you mad?’ He had uttered a cry and bent over the body. Now he was dancing and laughing and wringing my hand. Could this be my stem, self-contained friend? These were hidden fires, indeed! ‘A beard?”It is not the Baronet – it is – why, it is my neighbour, the convict!’ (HOUN)

  1. Find a restorative for [the answer to #2], and then find the soldier who supposedly took an expanded version of the same. What expanded restorative?

Answer: Voyage round the world

‘Sir Henry and Dr Mortimer were, however, in London, on their way to that long voyage which had been recommended for the restoration of his shattered nerves.’ (HOUN)

‘I waited a bit and then I wrote again. This time I had a reply, short and gruff.  Godfrey had gone on a voyage round the world, and it was not likely that he would be back for a year. That was all.  ‘I wasn’t satisfied, Mr Holmes…Is it not natural that I should wonder at his sudden silence and should wish to know what has become of him?”… I spoke to the station-master and also to the innkeeper in the village. I simply asked if they knew anything of my old comrade, Godfrey Emsworth. Both of them assured me that he had gone for a voyage round the world. He had come home and then had almost at once started off again. The story was evidently universally accepted.’ (BLAN)

  1. Compound the cost for a lady to have a similar restorative. How much?

Answer: Five thousand pounds

‘Well, well,’ said he, ‘I suppose I shall have to compound a felony as usual. How much does it cost to go round the world in first-class style?’ The lady stared in amazement. ‘Could it be done on five thousand pounds?’  ‘Well, I should think so, indeed!’ ‘Very good. I think you will sign me a cheque for that, and I will see that it comes to Mrs Maberley. You owe her a little change of air. Meantime, lady’ – he wagged a cautionary forefinger – ‘have a care! Have a care! You can’t play with edged tools for ever without cutting those dainty hands.’ (3GAB)

  1. With a like amount, buy a thief. Who?

Answer: Colonel Valentine Walter

With the shock, his broad-brimmed hat flew from his head, his cravat slipped down from his lips, and there was the long light beard and the soft, handsome, delicate features of Colonel Valentine Walter. Holmes gave a whistle of surprise.  ‘You can write me down an ass this time, Watson,’ said he. ‘This was not the bird that I was looking for.’  ‘Who is he?’ asked Mycroft, eagerly. ‘The younger brother of the late Sir James Walter, the head of the Submarine Department….’ I confess it. It was just as you say.  A Stock Exchange debt had to be paid. I needed the money badly. Oberstein offered me five thousand.  It was to save myself from ruin. But as to murder, I am as innocent as you.’ (BRUC)

Helpful Hint:  Your final answer should be appropriate for the times with February right around the corner.

February 14,  Valentine’s Day

 

 

TH6: A Little Game reminder & a helpful hint

Hello Watsonians–

Popping in to remind you that five days remain to play along with our TH6:EveryLinkRingsTrue warm up game.  Responses to the quiz are welcomed through January 29th.  Several very good, almost-100%-correct attempts have been submitted. Up to this point, however, only one of our Watsonians has managed to solve all five questions correctly on the first try.  (Change-of-heart-do-overs are also welcome through the 29th.)

Almost invariably question #3 is proving to the problem.  After correctly solving question #2, our quiz takers are making an assumption as to the first part of #3 which does not make sense when linked to the remaining questions because the assumption is incorrect.  If you are willing to give it a try (or a re-do), I recommend you think about Holmes’s good advice:

“There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.”

Question #3 requires you to look beyond the most obvious.

I have re-posted the questions below if you would like to give them a try. Since all the questions link, it is certainly possible to work from the bottom up.

Many thanks to all of you that have taken the time to play the game,

Margie/ JHWS ‘Mopsy’

  1. In ten minutes or less, accept a child. With the child in mind, choose 4 brief letters.
  1. Turn your four letters into a verb, send it across the moor, and confirm who it is not. Who?
  1. Find a restorative for [the answer to #2], and then find the soldier who supposedly took an expanded version of the same. What expanded restorative?
  1. Compound the cost for a lady to have a similar restorative. How much?
  1. With a like amount, buy a thief. Who?

Helpful Hint:  Your final answer should be appropriate for the times with February right around the corner.

TH6: An announcement and a little game

Hello Watsonians!

With the New Year underway, it is time to begin thinking about that annual event our ‘Calder’ (Brad Keefauver) once dubbed “Treasure or Torture”–the annual John H Watson Society Treasure Hunt.   With ‘Selena Buttons’ approval, I am pleased to serve as Treasure Hunt Master for 2018.  I hope to concoct a hunt you will find challenging and fun.  We are taking a somewhat different approach this year. ‘TH6: Every Link Rings True’ will be a 50-question quiz rather than our usual 100 questions, and all the questions will link.   Three of our previous hunts have featured some linking sections that were popular with our competitors.

To get you thinking about the possibility of participating this year, I have a small, five-question quiz below for you to think about over the next two weeks. Please do not post your answers here; your answers should be emailed to: treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.  Answers will be accepted through January 29th.

Won’t you play along?  As Holmes told Watson: “’Yes, you can, Watson. And you will, for you have never failed to play the game. I am sure you will play it to the end.”

Margie/JHWS ‘Mopsy’

TH6: Every Link Rings True Introduction Quiz

  1. In ten minutes or less, accept a child. With the child in mind, choose 4 brief letters. What four letters?
  2. Turn your four letters into a verb, send it across the moor, and confirm who it is not. Who?
  3. Find a restorative for [the answer to #2], and then find the soldier who supposedly took an expanded version of the same. What expanded restorative?
  4. Compound the cost for a lady to have a similar restorative. How much?
  5. With a like amount, buy a thief. Who?

Helpful Hint:  Your final answer should be appropriate for the times with February right around the corner.

‘It is so long a chain, and yet every link rings true.’

 

Annual Treasure Hunt: a Sequel

“A lie, Watson – a great, big, thumping, obtrusive, uncompromising lie”
(VALL, 800)

Dear fellow Watsonians, I must confess to a heinous crime.

In giving the answers to the Annual Treasure Hunt, I lied. Shamelessly. But I did it for a good cause.

Let me explain. Among the questions for the Hunt, I devised one that, in my mind, had to be the most difficult of the lot. Unfortunately, I had totally overlooked the fact that there was a simple, straightforward and perfectly Canonical answer to that question. When the answers arrived, I found out that all participants had given that correct alternative answer. So much for the so-called ingenuity and deviousness of the Quiz Master.
And so I lied. I changed the list of the answers that I had already prepared and put the alternative answer in the place of that which I had originally conceived. The purpose was to avoid spoiling the original answer and to provide the contestants with a new challenge.

Here it is. Question # 4 in the Hunt, you will recall, was the following: The subject of this question won a blue award twice. Who or what?

You all answered “Gilchrist”, who had won the Blue for the hurdles and the long jump. But there is another answer to that question, a most difficult and complex one.

So the sequel to the Annual Treasure Hunt is: find another answer to question #4, the answer that I had originally in mind.
Hints: this question requires a little digging in external sources, such as an encyclopaedia and/or Internet search engines. The subject of the question can be a person, an animal, a company, a government or any other entity. The subject is mentioned in the Canon, but the award is not (so it is useless to search for, say, all occurrences of the word “blue”).

Since this is a hard question, you have one month to submit the answer (by e-mail to treasurehunt (AT) johnhwatsonsociety.com). The answer will be posted on October 21.

I hope you will enjoy this quiz. Happy Hunting!

Treasure Hunt 2017: Results

My dear Watsonians,

it’s been very difficult to calculate the results of the Hunt. Not being “endowed by Nature with a phenomenal mathematical faculty” I had to check and re-check my calculations before I could be sure of the verdict. The results are:

Individual competition

The High Honors go to Michael M. Ellis, with an excellent 79.5 points out of 100. Honors go to Mark Doyle, who was able, for lack of time, to complete only part of the quiz (scoring an excellent % of correct answers on those which he actually submitted), with 46 points.

Team competition

This is what compelled me to exert all my attention and to rack my brain. We had three teams incredibly close, all three with a very high score.

The High Honors go to The Sound of the Baskervilles (Margie Deck, Sheila Holtgrieve, Lauren Messenger, Francis Bond) who scored 89 points out of 100 and won by a very close shave: the Honors go to An Experience of Canon (Beth Gallego, Paul Hartnett, Ron Lies, Rob Nunn) with 88.5 points out of 100. Third place and Honors for Uno Studio in Holmes (Vera Mazzotta, Marco Grassi, Stefano Guerra, Enrico Solito and Gianluca Salvatori) who scored 84.5 points out of 100.

There were many ingenious alternate answers and I had to consider them all carefully: most of them, I am happy to say, have been accepted as perfectly legitimate answers. The participants in many cases know more about the Canon than the Quiz Master!

Let me thank you again for participating and give you my apologies for the delay in announcing the results. Let me also thank those fellow Watsonians who, due to various reasons, were unable to compete in the Hunt but wrote giving me their support and their appreciation.

It’s been a great experience and an honor to act as Quiz Master. I hope you had fun and spent some pleasant hours of Watsonian/Holmesian fun. If I’ve been able to accomplish this, that’s the best reward one could hope for.

With my best Canonical regards,

Michele, JHWS “Reggie”

Treasure Hunt 2017: Answers

Dear All,

the 2017 Hunt ends today. Here are the answers.
I have received very few submissions. I’m afraid that maybe I’ve made the questions too hard and this has perhaps dampened the participants’ enthusiasm? I don’t know. I’ll be glad of everyone’s feedback on this.
I must also say that I have received many creative alternative answers and some of them have been accepted. I will post soon a list, so you all can take a look at the imaginative approach that your fellow participants have used.
The Honors list will be posted within the next week, I hope.
I want to thank all of you and to apologize for every mistake, misunderstanding, or simply not entertaining enough question, that I’ve made. It was a first experience and a challenging one. I must say that I’ll be glad to revert to the role of contestant for the next edition!

JHWS Treasure Hunt 2017 questions and answers
JHWS Treasure Hunt 2017 questions and answers

I hereby declare the 2017 Treasure Hunt… open!

Gooooood morning, Hunters!

It is now 9 a.m., August 1st, (CET) here in Italy, corresponding to midnight, July 31st, PST. I have chosen the hour as an homage to our previous Hunt Master, Margie Deck a.k.a. “Mopsy”, who lives on the Pacific coast. You can submit your answers until midnight, August 31st, PST. For further details, please check the Rules page.

A forum has been opened on the Quiz page for questions, clarifications, complaints, etc.  I will try to respond to any postings as quickly as possible, but please remember that I’m living in a Central Europe time zone.
You will certainly find some error in the document, especially considering my sometimes poor English. Any needed clarifications will be posted to the forum.  Please check it for updates every now and then.

The hunt is scored on a very simple point system. I’ve tried to avoid complications since I’m not as good as our previous Hunt Master. Therefore, 1 correct answer = 1 point, for a maximum of 100 points available. However, many questions are composed of multiple parts, so if you know part of a question (e.g. Who?), but not the other part (e.g. When?), please add the part you do know to your document.  You will receive credit for each individual part of the question that is answered correctly, so 0.5 points will be awarded for partly answered questions.

I have uploaded the Treasure Hunt both in Microsoft Word (.doc) and in .pdf.
Please see the rules page for instructions for submitting your finished hunt.

The game, ladies and gentlemen, is now officially afoot.

Michele

JHWS Treasure Hunt 2017 questions

JHWS Treasure Hunt 2017 questions

Treasure Hunt 2017 discussion forum

“We are hunting together, Mr. Holmes.” (WIST)

This post is now open for clarifications/questions/discussions concerning the 5th Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt.
The Treasure Hunt will start on July 31st at midnight (PST) and will close on August 31st at midnight (PST).

This forum will remain open for the duration of the Hunt to discuss anything related to the questions.
Please do not post specific answers to any of the questions, not even as working hypotheses.
Any questions posted here for the Treasure Hunt Master will be answered as quickly as possible.
You can also get in touch directly with the THM by e-mail: treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.

Happy Hunting!
Michele

 

The Treasure Hunt, Second Appetizer: Answer

Dear All,

I have received many ingenious replies, but only one team gave the correct one.
The SOB Team (Margie and Sheila) hit the mark perfectly and the best I can do is to quote their answer literally:
–Place & Name of the ‘Ghost’: British Museum /  British Museum Underground Station, no longer in use
–Stories, where it is noted Holmes went to the British Museum: HOUN, WIST
HOUN–
“I learned at the British Museum that he was a recognized authority upon the subject, and that the name of Vandeleur has been permanently attached to a certain moth which he had, in his Yorkshire days, been the first to describe.”
WIST–
“One morning he spent in town, and I learned from a casual reference that he had visited the British Museum. Save for this one excursion, he spent his days in long, and often solitary, walks, or in chatting with a number of village gossips whose acquaintance he had cultivated.”
“I spent a morning in the British Museum reading up that and other points. Here is a quotation from Eckermann’s `Voodooism and the Negroid Religions’: – ”  
Wikipedia:
–British Museum was a station on the London Underground, located in Holborn, central London. It was latterly served by the Central line and took its name from the nearby British Museum in Great Russell Street.
The station was opened by the Central London Railway in 1900. In 1933, with the expansion of Holborn station, less than 100 yards away, British Museum station was permanently closed. It was subsequently utilised as a military office and command post, but in 1989 the surface building was demolished and the remainder of the station is wholly disused.
–Ghost stations is the usual English translation for the German word Geisterbahnhöfe. This term was used to describe certain stations on Berlin’s U-Bahn and S-Bahn metro networks that were closed during the period of Berlin’s division during the Cold War. Since then, the term has come to be used to describe any disused underground station actively passed through by passenger trains, especially those on an underground railway line.

So, just a little clarification: I decided to cut this question out of the Hunt because the use of the term “ghost station” is not as familiar in English as is Geisterbahnhöfe to the Germans or “stazione fantasma” to the Italians. If you search the internet for a list of former London Underground stations you will probably find them described as “abandoned stations” or “disused stations”, not as “ghost stations”. This made the question very difficult indeed.
I must congratulate my fellow members of Uno Studio in Holmes who sent incredibly elaborate answers, digging deeply in the lore and tradition of English and German ghosts, in literature and otherwise. I kept telling them that it was easier than that… 🙂
Other valiant efforts were made by Robert Perret and Richard Olken. Thanks everybody for your answers.
We’re just about one week from the start of the Hunt. Keep your wits sharpened!

Michele, JHWS “Reggie”

The Treasure Hunt: Second Appetizer

Dear All,

as the deadline for the Hunt approaches, I have been busy in a revision process of the 100 questions. Using the feedback from the first test question, I had to come to a painful decision. One question was cut out because a certain turn of phrase would have been somewhat unfair to English-speaking people (ironically, Germans would have had significant advantages).

Since it was one of my favourite questions (and, I guess, the most difficult of the batch) I don’t want to let it die. So I submit it here for your consideration.
Hint: the solution is also the name of a London Underground station.

“No ghosts need apply”, said once Holmes. Nevertheless, he occasionally spent some time in a place that has the same name of a “ghost”. Which place? In which story or stories does he visit it?

I think that if you can guess this one, you will do very well indeed in the Hunt.

The solution will be posted at the end of next week. Have fun!

The Treasure Hunt Test Question

Dear all,

running a test question has been a useful and instructive experience. I hope I have learned something about how to put my questions correctly in order that they may be challenging but not impossible.
The test question proved itself harder that I judged at first. I promise that feedback will be incorporated in the final revision of the questions for the Hunt.

Only one team gave the correct answer: Margie Deck, “Mopsy” and Sheila Holtgrieve, “Daisy”.
The revised text of the question:
“The two friends sat over this while talking about a man who had a turbulent relationship with a person homonymous (same first and last name) of one of them. Name the friends, the man, and what they sat over.”

Answer: The two friends: Sherlock Holmes and John H Watson; the man: Paganini; what they sat over: a bottle of claret.
“This led him to Paganini, and we sat for an hour over a bottle of claret while he told me anecdote after anecdote of that extraordinary man.” (CARD, 894)
The tricky part was the connection between Paganini and a man named John Watson. Watson was an impresario and pianist who played with Paganini on a tour. Later Paganini fell in love with Watson’s daughter, Charlotte, and asked her to marry him, but Watson prevented the marriage and a bitter feud ensued between the two former colleagues.
I honestly remembered that this was an easier information to find, but I noticed too late that it’s not mentioned on Wikipedia or the Encyclopedia Britannica online articles on Paganini and it requires some more extended internet search.
I promise that other references of this kind will not be so hard to discover. The use of a common encyclopaedia or a good reference book (such as Jack Tracy’s Encyclopaedia Sherlockiana) should be enough.
Congratulations to the winners and don’t despair, this should actually be the highest level of difficulty that you will find in the Hunt (about 10% of questions shall be of this type).

The 5th Annual John H Watson Canonical Treasure Hunt

Dear fellow members,

as your Treasure Hunt Master for this year, it is my duty and pleasure to announce that the game is almost afoot. 100 Canonical questions are ready to be submitted to your (hopefully) eager brains. I hope that the challenge will be stimulating and fun.

The Hunt will open on midnight, July 31st, PST, corresponding to 9 a.m., August 1st, (CET) here in Italy. I have chosen the hour as an homage to our previous Hunt Master, Margie Deck a.k.a. “Gwen”, who lives on the Pacific coast. You can submit your answers until midnight, August 31st, PST.

As this is my first experience and, furthermore, I am not a native English speaker, I must admit that I’m a little uncertain regarding the form of the questions. I will be of course ready to help and clarify anything that might result in a misunderstanding on the meaning of certain expressions in the quiz.

To test this, I have a question to submit as an appetizer. You have one week to submit an answer.
“The two friends sat over this while talking about a man who had a turbulent relationship with an homonymous of one of them. Name the friends, the man, and what they sat over.”

This is one question that I would rate “medium hard” among those included in the Hunt.

Please submit your answers to treasurehunt@johnhwatsonsociety.com.

I hope to see many participants in this Hunt and that everybody will have fun!

Your Hunt Master

Michele, JHWS “Reggie”

4th Annual Treasure Hunt Results

“…I can congratulate ourselves upon several most happy results…”

The month of August is, as always, Treasure Hunt month for the John H Watson Society. Knowing the many hours required to finish the Treasure Hunt, we are always gratified to see the number of entries submitted. After many hours of scoring yesterday with the help of Sheila Holtgrieve (JHWS ‘Daisy’), I am happy to announce the results of the 4th Annual John H Watson Society Treasure Hunt.

Team Competition

With 144 available points this year, our returning 2015 High Honors team from Italy, Uno Studio In Holmes, has earned High Honors again this year with an incredible 142 points. Team members include Michele Lopez, Enrico Solito, Stefano Guerra, Vera Mazzotta, and Gabriele Mazzoni. Congratulations again to this amazing team.

Team Honors this year is shared between returning competitors The Retired Beekeepers of Sussex with 135 points and the newly formed team An Experience of Canon Which Extends Over Four Players and Three Separate States with 134 points. The UK-based Beekeepers are represented by Elinor Gray, Rowan MacBean, Tweedisgood, Spacefall, and Cheryl LeBlanc-Weldon of the Halifax Spence Munros in Nova Scotia. An Experience of Canon Which Extends Over Four Players and Three Separate States team members are Rob Nunn and Brad Keefauver (Two Guys Down In Illinois team from last year), Beth Gallego (California), and Ron Lies (Colorado). Giving this team an extra award for the-longest-possible-team-name was briefly considered.

Two teams earn the O.V.E (Order of Valiant Effort) award this year: First time competitor, The White Rose Irregulars of York, Pennsylvania, with 126 points, and the returning team from Canada, The Bootmakers Of Toronto, with 122 points. Beth Austin, Debbie Clark, Denny Dobry, Tom Drucker, and Flo Specter represent the Irregulars, while Peter Calamai, Chris Redmond, Cliff Goldfarb, Doug Wrigglesworth and John Gehan represent the Bootmakers.

Honorable Mention this year to two teams that began the hunt but due to unfortunate circumstances could not complete it: The Sherlock Holmes Society of India and The Sound of the Baskervilles of Seattle. We hope the fates are kinder next year and these teams can return to hunt again. 2016 marks the first time La Fayette of La Societe Sherlock Holmes de France could not participate due to schedule conflicts; we sincerely hope kind fates extend to that excellent team next year too.

Individual Competition

High Honors in the very difficult Individual category goes to first time US competitor Michael Ellis with 128 points. Mark Doyle of Australia, another first time competitor, has earned Honors in the Individual category with 105 points. Honorable Mention to Anne Nelson of Washington, DC, who also began the hunt but could not complete it due to unforeseen complications; we warmly invite her back next year to give it another try.

Thank you all for competing this year.  A post will be made on the Quiz page soon with the answers to the hunt. We will be contacting all the participants concerning addresses for the delivery of the small mementos. I have enjoyed serving as Treasure Hunt Master for 2015 and 2016. I appreciate your participation, patience and good humor. You have taught me many good things.

Margie

JHWS Gwen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Help Wanted: Quizmaster

It’s the end of August, and there are only a few days remaining before the close of the Fourth Annual JHWS Treasure Hunt. I would like to thank and congratulate everyone who participated, including my teammates in “An Experience of Canon Extending Over Four Teammates and Three Separate States”. I think we did pretty well, but we will see what “Gwen”, our Treasure Hunt Master has to say about our answers!

Margie Deck, JHWS “Gwen”, is the mastermind behind this year’s test, and some of those questions certainly showed how she earned the name of “Pawky Puzzler”! She will be stepping down from the role of Treasure Hunt Master so that she can play along with the rest of us next year. Before she hands off the baton, I want to thank her for all her hard work!

Now that the Treasure Hunt is ending, I’d like to remind everyone that we are currently looking for a Quizmaster to preside over our regular quizzes. This person would create and post short quizzes every two weeks (except during August, the month of the Treasure Hunt). Some of our past quizzes can be found on the Quiz Page. We are also looking for submissions of individual quizzes, if you would like to just try it out. Have you been bitten by the bug to create your own Canonical Quiz? Send it to selena @ johnhwatsonsociety.com!