Friday, May 8, 2009

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was born on May 22, 1859 and his birth spawned detective novel enthusiasts for generations. Interestingly, Doyle's choice of occupation involved the study of the eyes, and he was an ophthalmologist. But he stated in his autobiography when "no patient crossed his threshold" it gave him time to write. Well, he seemed to see into the eyes of the justice system and gifted us with the creation of Sherlock Holmes. Enjoy these 12 Sherlock Holmes quotes to celebrate the birth of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

1. ?The temptation to form premature theories upon insufficient data is the bane of our profession.?

2. "Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself; but talent instantly recognizes genius"

3. "Can a husband ever carry about a secret all his life and a woman who loves him have no suspicion of it?"

4. "One dumb-bell, Watson! Consider an athlete with one dumb-bell. Picture to yourself the unilateral development - the imminent danger of a spinal curvature. Shocking, Watson, shocking!"

5. "The interplay of ideas and the oblique uses of knowledge are often of extraordinary interest"

6. "The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes"

7. "It may be that you are not yourself luminous, but you are a conductor of light. Some people without possessing genius have a remarkable power of stimulating it"

8. "There is nothing new under the sun. It has all been done before"

9. "It is an old maxim of mine that when you have excluded the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth"

10. "The Press, Watson, is a most valuable institution, if you only know how to use it"

11. "I must take the view, your Grace, that when a man embarks upon a crime, he is morally guilty of any other crime which may spring from it"

12. "I have seen too much not to know that the impression of a woman may be more valuable than the conclusion of an analytical reasoner"

Sherlock Holmes ran a private detective agency out of his residence on Baker Street with his close friend Watson. Interestingly, he apparently retires to a bee farm to pursue his interest in bee keeping. Seems like a puzzling end for our fictional hero of justice. Most importantly, however, is that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created one of our most beloved intellectual detectives. And hope you've enjoyed these quotes by Sherlock Holmes to celebrate the birth of his creator.

For more famous quotes, check out the popular Famous-Quotes-And-Quotations.com, a website that specializes in 'Top 10' lists of quotations in dozens of categories.