 "a case of identity" is one of the 56 short sherlock holmes stories written by sir arthur conan doyle and is the third story in the adventures of sherlock holmes. ==plot summary== thumb|holmes welcoming miss mary the story revolves around the case of miss mary sutherland, a woman with a substantial income from the interest on a fund set up for her. she is engaged to a quiet londoner who has recently disappeared. sherlock holmes's detective powers are barely challenged as this turns out to be quite an elementary case for him, much as it puzzles watson. the fiancÃ©, mr. hosmer angel, is a peculiar character, rather quiet, and rather secretive about his life. miss sutherland only knows that he works in an office in leadenhall street, but nothing more specific than that. all his letters to her are typewritten, even the signature, and he insists that she write back to him through the local post office. the climax of the sad liaison comes when mr. angel abandons miss sutherland at the altar on their wedding day. holmes, noting all these things, hosmer angel's description, and the fact that he only seems to meet with miss sutherland while her disapproving youngish stepfather, james windibank, is out of the country on business, reaches a conclusion quite quickly. a typewritten letter confirms his belief beyond doubt. only one person could have gained by this: mr. james windibank. holmes deduces "angel" had "disappeared" by simply going out the other side of a four-wheeler cab. after solving the mystery, holmes chooses not to tell his client the solution, since "if i tell her she will not believe me. you may remember the old persian saying, 'there is danger for him who taketh the tiger cub, and danger also for whoso snatches a delusion from a woman.' there is as much sense in hafiz as in horace, and as much knowledge of the world." in this, however, he can be accused of not fulfilling his professional duty for which he was paid â namely, to investigate the matter to which she set him, provide her with the results and let her decide what to do with them. holmes does advise his client to forget "mr. angel"; miss sutherland refuses to take holmes' advice and vows to remain faithful to "angel" until he reappears â for at least ten years. holmes predicts windibank will continue a career in crime and end up on the gallows.  ==adaptations== this story was the basis for the third holmes adventure (filmed in 1921) in the silent film series starring eille norwood.a case of identity (1921). imdb.com in 2001, this was the basis for the ninth episode of the second season of the animated television series [[sherlock holmes in the 2
1891_short_stories Sherlock_Holmes_short_stories_by_Arthur_Conan_Doyle Works_originally_published_in_The_Strand_Magazine