The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-07-08
SHERLOCK HOLINESS LINEAGE
DETECTIIE STORI FORNILi
TRACED FAN BtIk.
NeIialre wrote % 30 D,d FSrGOtten Nu-
thOrs In ArabIan. Persian. IIrbrrW
and Perhaps chinese sIiIi OVisOrtun-
~ for Indi, hiuaIliy In orb IRE % out.

the great detective touched a match "a
a cigarette and leaned back IN his chair
mNuriously.
But how did Won ever guess that he
Was left handed and cross eyed, that h"
only shaved himself on Thursdays and
then IN a darkensd room and that the
mountain laurel was his favorits Wild
fower' And when YOU knew these things
ho~ did they help you tn discover that
he had really stolen the famous ~ Graf,
fenhaussen pearls?- asked humorous
admirer
Sherlock Holmes would have said
Elementary and each Of the lesser
lights in detective fiction would have
made a similar reply according to his
skill You wonder where all this deduction
started and who first used IL.
To settle this very point q student al
Columbia devoted considerable time a
few years ago. He was moved to start
his investigation by hearing Brander
Matthews say in a lecture on Poe that
~ far as he knew voltaires story OF
-Zadig- was tho original detective story
Leon Fraser was the student. and he set
to work to go back IL possible littls
further.
Tho results OF his efforts were published
in Modern Language No'ss. a postgraduate
ma Canine at Columbia: and he certainly
went back considerably further.
A recent writer has told how Voltaire
came to write -Zadig- II was after he
had got himself into hot water at court by
being careless enough to voice his belief
that some members Of the royal circle we're
cheating at cards The Queen didn't cars
for his frank opinion and the Bastile
seemed about 90 loom up in Noltaire 8
Immediate future: 80 he hurried away 70
an inn outside OF Paris and sent word to
the DIchesse du Maine that this was an
excellent opportunity for her to give
evidence Of her friendship for him.
The lady responded and gave him two
small rooms in her chateau where he
could keep the shutters closed and candles
going night and day. For a month he
stayed there. and most Of that time he
was writing -Zadig- II has been said
that the story written under these cir
c,Imstances was not detective story at
all but an Oriental tale. and that Zadig
was merely a philosopher.
This at any rate is the story Of Iadis;
He meets the kings huntsnan one day
a. he IL walking near n wood and II asked
whether he has sem one Of the king
horses. which has run away.
-It ia the horse that has the hest stride.
ZadiR replies. 1T ~ just five feet high. has
n very small hoof tail three and a half
feet long and then he goes IN To supply
other details.
which way did he go'- asked the hunts
man.
Il have not seen him at all. answers
ZadiR. and I have never heard "f him
before
They jump 90 The conclusion that Zadig
has stolen the horse and he IL arrested.
just after sentence has been passed
upon him some one RECEIVERS the horrs
and then every one wants Ia know how
he hAppened to he - familiar With the
og an animal which he had
never seen.
While walking in the woods noticed
the footprints 81 horse at equal dis
tances. he explains. There. ! said. IL
a horse that has a perfect pace The
dust on the trees along the trail was
brushed 81 just seven feet in expanss'.
Therefore the hors., had tail exactly
thrr.. and a half feet long
Fraser the Columbia student found
the same idea in Chevalier de MaIlly's
VOYAGE ct Aventur~s de- trois Princes
dc Sarendip.- which came out an l5ip.
tw enty eight years before 'Zadig was
" ritten. Here he found three princes
Who met n camel driver beWailing the
l0ss - one Of his herd. This ~ the way
Fraser tells the story.
They have noticed the tracks 81 such
an animal and when asked by the driver
IN thew know e his whereabouts the
.lclest rppli-s Was he not blind' The
second DID h- not have tooth OUT IN"
third. Wa- l., not lame? The camel driver
with delight 20 IA" questions and
continues on his way rejoicing
Not finding his camel. however, he re-
turns and accuses them % hant"ring with
him To prnve that what We say 10 50.
80 vi the eldest YOUR camel carried butter
IN one side and honey On the other
The second And lady rode tn" camel.
&c
In this c1s.. too spnebody turns up with
the l,s.as' and an -XUlsnatio h demanded
One prince Judged that the camel was
blind b"Causa the grass On one sld" 81
the road was gnRw.-d down whll" that on
the other side. which was far better, was
not tnuched II wasn't hard ~ deduc-
that the camel had only un" RoOi "y"
Nouthfuls ~ half Ch.w.d heritage found
IN the rad 'rh th" second prince thai
IA. "a mel had on. tooth missing
But even ID. Malllv was not the org
mai according e. This columbus II ud"nt
FOR ~. fotlnd that ms tai. - directly
rrans.r.h"d from an otherwise unknown
ItPhap writer. IhrIstoforo Arn"no. HIS
p.T-grinaggtp III ire giovanni HRho-
vol del ?. III Sar.ndIpDo.' of which bat
ihre" copies pre- "ytant. was printed a.
N"nIc. m 1856 with ~" paEal permit
10 I'D isI5 -gv- Mr. Fraser
ID. NaIllv -a,d upun his title mage that
the story ws- translated from tho Per
san and the same sOIrc" ~ credited
hy Christofnro Armeno Bot Fraser
vas unabl. 90 find any counterpart ~
the Italian work Ne could traC" ell
th.. stories ~ this nature 10 numb"r
n Dri.ntal sources and he believes that
The Ven.tian's book - simply collection
u diverse tales
The episode ~ the lost camel - the
oldest % the volume. " was found IN
Arabian. Persian Turkish and Hebrew
The earliest apparent source. SAYS
Fraser. -is the tract Synh"drin II the
IA NV lonlan Talmud
The Hebrew version has to do with a
ialoRua between two Jewish prisoners
Dne sFv a. they are being taken along
a road The camel that IL ahead ~ Is
IL blind he carries two leather bottles.
pne cunta ming wine. the other oil. or
his twn conductors one il Jew. the
other \ pagan- How do YOU know
hat asks their master. He - blind |
pe,aIIs. h.. Rrazea on one sid. ~ the /
vav only - the answer. Parallel To- !
iis tracks are little bubbles On the sur ,
fa,,, - to. errth oil and another li1uid !
hat has sunk into IN" ground wine