Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Sign of the Four Illustrated Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

The Sign of the Four (1890), also called The Sign of Four, is the second novel featuring Sherlock Holmes written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. According to Mary, in December 1878, her father had telegraphed her upon his safe return from India and requested her to meet him at the Langham Hotel in London. When Mary arrived at the hotel, she was told her father had gone out the previous night and not returned. The only clue Mary can give Holmes is a map of a fortress found in her father's desk with the names of Jonathan Small, Mahomet Singh, Abdullah Khan and Dost Akbar. Small claims the treasure brought nothing but bad luck to anyone who came in touch with it-the servant who was murdered; Sholto living with fear and guilt; and now he himself is trapped in slavery for life-half his life building a breakwater in the Andaman Islands and the rest of his life digging drains in Dartmoor Prison